


A Treasured Discovery

by LizzeXX



Series: The Heart of Time Saga [1]
Category: Doctor Who, Doctor Who (2005)
Genre: Action/Adventure, And Naive, Canon Divergence, Canon Rewrite, Developing Friendships, Drama, Embedded Images, Eventual Romance, Feelings, Flirting, Friends to Lovers, Friendship, Gallifrey, Getting to Know Each Other, Healing, Hurt/Comfort, Nella - Freeform, Original Character(s), Originally Posted on FanFiction.Net, Pre-Relationship, Psychic Abilities, Recovery, Rose gains a sister, Series 1 Rewrite, Strangers to Friends, Super sweet Time Lady, The Doctor is not Alone, The Heart of Time Saga, The Last Great Time War, The doctor to the rescue, Thella - Freeform, Theta/Nella - Freeform, They're sweet on each other, Time Travel, doctor who - Freeform, more than just friends, space travel, time lady - Freeform, visionary
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-03
Updated: 2021-01-03
Packaged: 2021-03-11 05:06:41
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 24
Words: 90,784
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28479636
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LizzeXX/pseuds/LizzeXX
Summary: Deep in the pits of Van Statten's museum lies a second alien, but not just ANY alien, a Time Lady, the Angel. Fallen to Earth with the Dalek she has survived the Time War. But there's something…different…about her, special even. What is it? The Doctor is certainly curious to find out.9/OC(friendship plus)Time Lady
Relationships: Ninth Doctor/Original Female Character(s), The Doctor (Doctor Who) & Original Female Character(s), The Doctor (Doctor Who) & Rose Tyler, The Doctor/The Angel, Thella - Relationship, Theta/Nella
Series: The Heart of Time Saga [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2086098
Comments: 6
Kudos: 30





	1. Dalek: A Second Dalek?

**Author's Note:**

> I have been plagiarized many times since I began writing fanfiction :( So please, do not copy my work onto other sites. And if you see my work, whether in full or tweaked or mish-mashed into other people's works, reach out to me on tumblr (LizzeXX) and let me know so I can look into it, post evidence on my tumblr's 'Plagiarizers' page, and ask for help reporting when it happens :(
> 
> I have seen it all by now. From people flat out copying everything and just pasting it as is, to changing the OC's name or from 3rd to 1st person, to alternating parts of their own work with putting in parts of mine, to starting off originally and then transitioning to my work, to using Proffy for 1 story then switching to Evy in their next, to people literally taking chunks from 5 different series and piecing it together into a story, so please, PLEASE, let me know if you see it happening. I am nervous enough posting this on AO3 or any other site, it is reassuring to me if people can keep an eye out and just let me know if you see anything happening :(

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Welcome to my third DW/OC series, The Heart of Time Saga, my first two being The Academic Series featuring my OC the Professor and The Lunar Cycle with my OC Evelyn 'Evy' Daniels. This series will be completely separate from the other two, with a new OC/Time Lady, Angel, to be introduced, and so I will not be providing a description of her in this note as we haven't met her yet. This will be a Doctor/OC story, however that relationship will be built up over time so, while we may not see any romantic scenes at first, we will get to them eventually and there will be plenty of cute/fluff-like scenes between 9 and her to come before that :)
> 
> This saga will begin in Series 1 and I will post 1 story for it every Sunday until I've caught up to what I've posted on FF.net, where the complete series including Spin-offs and AUs is located. AUs and Spin-offs will NOT be posted on this site. I have up to Series 8 complete for Angel so we'll have 9 stories (including the 10-specials) posted here. 
> 
> Each episode of this series will be broken up into about 3 chapters, with 5 chapters for the specials as they are longer :) Each chapter will be, at the very least, 3,000 words long and will have its own title to it. This story will also include scenes that do not involve the Doctor, to incorporate the more complete feel of an episode.
> 
> ~8~ is a scene break
> 
> Disclaimer #1: I do not own Doctor Who...or we'd have more Time Lords popping up everywhere :)
> 
> Disclaimer #2: My OC, Angel, is in no way associated with any other stories by other authors that have a Time Lady named The Angel.
> 
> This story is dedicated to my grandmother, who always called me 'her little angel.' Rest in peace Oma. I miss you.

The TARDIS materialized 53 stories below ground, following a distress call the scanners had picked up. The Doctor and Rose stepped out, looking around at the darkened room they found themselves in.

"So, what is it?" Rose asked as the Doctor stopped short, "What's wrong?"

"Don't know," he replied, "Some kind of signal drawing the TARDIS off course..."

"Where are we?" Rose frowned, looking around again.

"Earth, Utah, North America. About half a mile underground."

"And...when are we?"

"2012."

"God, that's so close, so I should be..." she trailed in thought, "26," the Doctor turned and flicked on a light switch, revealing them to be in some sort of showcase room, "Blimey! It's a great big museum!"

"An alien museum. Someone's got a hobby. They must've spent a fortune on this…" he shook his head as they walked down one of the rows of glass casing, looking at different bits of artifacts, "Chunks of meteorite, moon dust...that's the milometer from the Roswell Spaceship."

"That's a bit of Slitheen!" Rose exclaimed, seeing what looked like a Slitheen arm stuck up in a case, "That's a Slitheen's arm, it's been _stuffed_."

The Doctor turned, catching something out of the corner of his eye, "Ah! Look at you!" he stopped before the case, looking straight ahead at a robotic head, seeming very retro in design.

"What is it?" Rose eyed it curiously.

"An old friend of mine...well, enemy. The stuff of nightmares...reduced to an exhibit. I'm getting old."

"Is _that_ where the signal's coming from?"

"Nah, it's stone dead," he waved her off, "The signal's alive. Something's reaching out," he stared intently through the glass, "Calling for help," he reached out, placing the tip of his finger gently against it.

And, as always in museums, the moment the glass had been touched...alarms went off.

Though, unlike in museums, a swarm of heavily armed men surrounded them, all aiming their guns at the duo.

"If someone's collecting aliens, that makes you Exhibit A," Rose remarked to the Doctor as he just flashed the soldiers a grin.

~8~

A man emerged from the lift to the helicopter pad, very well dressed, slightly bald, with a goatee, walking briskly down the corridor as though he owned the place, which, in fact, he did. As soon as he stepped out a small entourage of guards and personnel followed him.

"On behalf of all of us, I want to wish you a very happy birthday, sir," a man said, rushing over to his side, "And the President called to convey his personal best wishes."

"The President is 10 points down," he stated, "I want him replaced."

The man frowned, "I don't think that's very wise, sir..."

"Thank you so much for your opinion. You're fired," he glanced back to the soldiers, "Get rid of him."

"Wha…" the man began but the soldiers just pulled him back, dragging him off.

"Wipe his memory, put him on the road someplace," he called back to them as he continued walking, "Memphis, Minneapolis, somewhere beginning with 'M,'" a rather tall ginger woman quickly hastened to take the man's place at his side, "So, the next President, what do you think? Republican or Democrat?"

"Democrat, sir," she replied.

"For what reason?" he stopped short, eyeing her.

The woman tensed, knowing the wrong answer could end with her just like the last man, "They're just so funny, sir?"

He looked at her intently, "What is your name?"

"Goddard, sir, Diana Goddard."

He smiled, "I like you Diana Goddard," and turned to continue on, "So, where's the English kid?"

A young man hurried up to him, a distinct accent to him, "Sir! Sir! I bought ten more artifacts at auction, Mr. Van Statten."

"Bring 'em on, let me see 'em," Van Statten ordered.

"Sir, with respect, there's something more urgent," Goddard informed him, "We arrested two intruders 53 floors down. We don't know how they got in."

"I'll tell you how they got in. In-tru-da window."

No one laughed.

"In-tru-da window," he glanced at them, "That was _funny_!"

And suddenly they burst out with a polite, if tense, laughter.

He nodded, pleased, "Bring 'em in, let's see 'em, and tell Simmons I wanna visit my little pet and then perhaps take a trip to see how the other one's doing. Get to it!"

He turned and walked through a door as Goddard tapped her earpiece, "Simmons? You'd better give me good news. Is it talking?"

"Not exactly 'talking,' no," Simmons replied back, the sound of a chainsaw and a semi-robotic screaming in the background.

"What's it doing?"

"Screaming. Is that any good?"

"What about the other one?"

"Does that one ever?" he scoffed, "Besides, Van Statten told me to crack this one first. Not like we can't see the other one."

She quickly cut off the connection as the chainsaw started up again and turned to join Van Statten in his office where 'the English kid' was showing him the purchased artifacts, "And this is the last...paid 800,000 dollars for it," the boy said, holding up a sort of triangular arched item with small ridges and lights on it.

Goddard looked over as the two intruders were brought in and led to the desk.

"What does it do?" Van Statten asked, taking the device from the kid.

"Well you see, the tubes on the side must be to channel something. I think maybe fuel..."

"I really wouldn't hold it like that," the Doctor cut in.

"Shut it," Goddard glared at him.

"Really, though, that's wrong."

"Is it dangerous?" the kid looked up at him, concerned.

"No," he smiled, "Just looks silly," he reached out to take the artifact when security readied their guns, forcing him to pause. Van Statten held up a hand, signaling it was alright and handed the object over, "You just need to be..." he ran his fingers gently over the artifact, playing a light note, "...delicate."

Everyone looked over rather impressed as he beamed at them, all the while playing it.

"It's a musical instrument," Van Statten smiled.

The Doctor nodded, "And it's a long way from home."

Van Statten stood, "Here, let me," he grabbed it away from the Doctor who merely raised his eyebrows.

"I did say 'delicate,'" he reminded after a moment as Van Statten tried to make it play but only succeeded in making a series of beeping noises, "Reacts to the smallest fingerprint. It needs precision," Van Statten touched it more gently, managing a few notes to the Doctor's delight, "Very good. Quite the expert."

"As are you," Van Statten countered before tossing the instrument aside where it landed somewhere on the floor. The Doctor's eyes followed it, slightly alarmed at how the man had cast it off, "Who exactly are you?"

The Doctor turned back to him, a slightly more disdainful look in his eyes, "I'm the Doctor. And who are _you_?"

"Like you don't know," Van Statten scoffed, "We're hidden away with the most valuable collection of extra-terrestrial artifacts in the world and you just stumbled in by mistake?"

"Pretty much sums me up, yeah."

"The question is…how did you get in? 53 floors down? With your little cat burglar accomplice," he glanced at Rose, "Quite a collector yourself, she's rather pretty."

"She's gonna smack you if you keep calling her 'she,'" Rose threatened.

"She's English too!" he laughed, turning to 'the English kid,' "Hey, little Lord Fauntleroy, got you a girlfriend."

The young man rolled his eyes, "This is Mr. Henry Van Statten."

"And who's he when he's at home?" Rose asked.

"Mr. Van Statten owns the Internet."

"Don't be stupid, no one owns the Internet."

"And let's just keep the whole world thinking that way, right kids?" Van Statten smirked at her.

"So you're an expert on just about everything except the things in your museum," the Doctor reasoned, "Anything you don't understand, you lock up."

"And you claim greater knowledge?" Van Statten eyed him.

"I don't need to make claims. I know how good I am."

"And yet, _I_ captured you. Right next to the Cage. What were you doing down there?"

"You tell me."

"The Cage contains one of my two living specimens."

"And what're they?"

"Like you don't know," Van Statten scoffed.

"Show me," the Doctor challenged.

"You wanna see 'em?"

"Blimey, you can smell the testosterone," Rose remarked.

"Goddard, inform the Cage," Van Statten ordered, "We're heading down," Goddard nodded, "You, English," he turned to the young man, "Look after the girl. Canoodle or spoon, or whatever it is you British do. And you, Doctor-with-no-name..." he turned and walked over to the lift, "Come and see my pets."

~8~

Van Statten led the Doctor to the heavy door of 'the Cage,' eager to show off one of his prizes, "We've tried everything. The creature has...shielded itself but there's definite signs of life inside," he turned and entered a code to the Cage, opening it behind him.

"Inside?" the Doctor frowned, "Inside what?"

"Welcome back, sir," Simmons stepped out, garbed in a protective suit, "I've had to take the power down, the Metaltron is resting."

"Metaltron?"

"Thought of it myself," Van Statten smirked, "Good, isn't it? Although I'd much prefer to find out its _real_ name. Perhaps if you can do that, I'll let you see the other one."

Simmons turned to the Doctor, "Here, you'd better put these on…" he offered him a thick pair of gloves, "The last guy that touched it...burst into flames."

"I won't touch it then," the Doctor replied.

"Go ahead, Doctor," Van Statten gestured to the door, "Impress me," he stepped back as the Doctor entered the Cage, "Don't open that door until we get a result," he ordered a guard quietly, both he and Goddard turning to watch a monitor of what was happening in the Cage.

The Doctor glanced back at the door as it shut before turning to look at some instruments Simmons had been using to torture the alien. He looked over and saw a faint blue light in the darkness, "Look, I'm sorry about this. Mr. Van Statten might think he's clever, but never mind him. I've come to help. I'm the Doctor."

"Doc-tor…" the alien began, a raspy, metallic voice echoing.

The Doctor's eyes widened in absolute shock, " _Impossible_."

"THE Doctor?" the Doctor could only watch in horror, his mouth open, as the lights came on around the alien, illuminating his greatest enemy, "Exterminate! Exterminate! Exterminate!"

The Doctor turned and ran to the door, banging on it, desperate to escape the Dalek chained within, "Let me out!"

"Exterminate!"

~8~

"Sir, it's gonna kill him!" Goddard cried as Van Statten refused to open the door.

"It's _talking_!" he countered, gleeful.

~8~

"You are an enemy of the Daleks!" it cried, "You must be destroyed!"

It waved its laser arm around helplessly as the Doctor's terrified expression faded into a huge grin, "It's not working!" the Dalek's eyestalk looked down at its laser arm while the Doctor laughed manically, "Fantastic! Oh, _fantastic_! Powerless! Look at you. The Great Space Dustbin. How does it feel?" he lunged at the Dalek who strained against the chains to back up.

"Keep back!"

The Doctor looked straight into its eyestalk, just inches away from it, "What for? What're you going to do to me? If you can't kill...then what are you good for, Dalek? What's the point of you?" he stepped back and circled it, the Dalek following his progress with its eyestalk, "You're nothing. What the hell are you here for?"

"I am waiting for orders."

"What does _that_ mean?" he scoffed.

"I am a soldier. I was bred to receive orders."

"Well you're never gonna get any. Not ever."

"I demand orders!"

"They're never gonna come! Your race is _dead_! You all burnt, all of you. Ten million ships on fire, the entire Dalek race wiped out in one second."

"You lie!"

"I watched it happen. I MADE it happen!"

"You...destroyed us?"

The Doctor blinked and walked away, turning his back on the Dalek, "I had no choice," he said quietly.

"And what of the Time Lords?"

"Dead. They burnt with you. The end of the last great Time War. Everyone lost."

"And the coward survived."

"Oh, and I caught your little signal..." the Doctor said mockingly, "'Help me,' poor little thing, but there's no one else coming 'cos there's no one else left."

The Dalek lowered its eyestalk, "I am alone in the Universe."

The Doctor smiled, "Yep."

"So are you," it looked up at him as his smile faded, "We are the same."

The Doctor spun around angrily, "We're _not_ the same, I'm not…" he stopped, "No, wait. Maybe we _are_. You're right, yeah, ok. You've got a point. 'Cos I know what to do. I know what should happen. I know what you deserve," he raised his eyebrows, "Exterminate!"

He turned and pulled a lever on the control panel, electrocuting the Dalek, watching as it started screaming again, "Have pity!"

"Why should I?" he glared, "You never did!" he turned and upped the voltage.

"Help me!"

Suddenly security burst into the room and grabbed the Doctor as he lunged for the control panel again, pulling him back.

"I saved your life," Van Statten turned to the Dalek, "Now talk to me! God damn it, _talk to me_!"

"You've got to destroy it!" the Doctor shouted as he was dragged away.

"The last in the Universe," Van Statten continued, ignoring the Doctor, "And now I know your name. _Dalek_. Speak to me, Dalek," no reply, "I am Henry Van Statten, now _recognize me_!" still no reply. So he turned to Simmons, "Make it talk again, Simmons," Simmons approached the Dalek, a dark smirk on his face, "Whatever it takes."

~8~

Rose looked around the messy workshop Adam or, as Van Statten liked to call him, 'that English kid,' worked in as he showed her around.

"Sorry about the mess," Adam apologized, "Mr. Van Statten sort of lets me do my own thing. So long as I deliver the goods..." he watched as Rose prodded a few things on a workbench, before picking up an object, "What do you think that is?" he asked, handing it to her.

"Er...a lump of metal?" Rose asked.

"Yeah," Adam nodded, smiling, "Yeah, but _I_ think, well, I'm almost certain, it's from the hull of a spacecraft," Rose examined the lump of metal before placing it down carefully, "The thing is, it's all true. Everything the United Nations tries to keep quiet, spacecrafts, aliens, visitors to Earth, they really exist."

"That's amazing," she breathed.

"I know it sounds incredible," he nodded, sheepish, "But I honestly believe that the whole Universe is _teeming_ with life."

"I'm gob-smacked, yeah," she smiled at him, if only he knew, "And you do what? Sit here and catalogue it?"

"Best job in the world," he rolled his eyes.

"Imagine if you could get out there. Travel amongst the stars and see it for real?"

"Yeah...I'd give anything," he sighed, "But I don't think it's ever gonna happen, not in our lifetimes."

"Oh, you never know..." she smirked to herself, "What about all those people who say they've been inside spaceships and things and talked to aliens?"

"I think they're nutters."

"Yeah, me too," she laughed, she was one of them now, "So, how'd you end up here?"

"Van Statten has agents all over the world looking for geniuses to recruit."

"Ah, right, you're a genius."

"Sorry, but yeah...can't help it, I was born clever," he told her jokingly, getting her to smile, "When I was eight, I logged onto the U.S. Defense System, nearly caused World War Three."

"What, and that's funny is it?" she turned to him with wide eyes, having nearly experienced a real WWIII.

"Well you should've been there! Just to see them running about! Fantastic!"

"You sound like the Doctor."

"Are you and him..."

"No!" she said quickly, "We're just friends."

Adam nodded, "Good."

Rose smiled, a bit shy, "Why's it good?"

"Just is," he smiled back, both of them just holding the other's gaze for a moment.

"So..." she looked around, before turning to him, "Wouldn't you rather be downstairs? I mean, you've got these bits of metal and stuff, but Mr. Van Statten's got a _living_ creature down there. Two of 'em!"

"Yeah...yeah well I _did_ ask but he keeps it to himself. Although, if you're a genius, it doesn't take long to patch in on the comm. system."

Rose laughed, "Let's have a look then!"

He turned to a computer and tapped in some keys, Rose observing over his shoulder as he worked, "I tried to check out the second alien, but the security on that one is too good, even I can't get through. But this one…this one doesn't do much. It's weird. It's kind of...useless, it's just like this...great big pepper pot."

He stepped back so Rose could see the Cage, where Simmons was approaching the Dalek, torturing it with one of the devices as it screamed.

"It's being tortured!" she gasped, alarmed, "Where's the Doctor?"

"I don't know," Adam shook his head.

"Take me down there. Now!" she turned and strode out of the room.

~8~

One of the guards pushed the Doctor into the lift with Van Statten, Goddard, and a few other guards to be taken to another part of the facility. After what had happened with the Dalek, Van Statten refused to show him the other alien.

"The metal's just battle armor," the Doctor explained, "The real Dalek creature's inside."

"What does it look like?" Van Statten asked.

"A nightmare. It's a mutation. The Dalek race was genetically engineered, every single emotion was removed except hate."

"Genetically engineered..." Van Statten repeated, actually impressed, "By whom?"

"By a genius, Van Statten," the Doctor glared at him, "By a man who was king of his own little world, you'd like him."

"It's been on Earth for over fifty years," Goddard cut in, "Both of them. Paired and sold at private auctions moving from one collection to another together. Why would that one be a threat now?"

"Because I'm here," the Doctor replied, grim. He glanced at Goddard, "How did either of them get to Earth? Does anyone know?"

"Records say both aliens came from the sky like a meteorite. They fell to Earth on the Ascension Islands. The Dalek burnt in its crater for nearly three days before anybody could get near it and all that time it was screaming. It must've gone insane."

"And the other one?"

"Was found in the crater as well," Goddard shrugged, "A few feet away from the Dalek. Unconscious."

"Must've fallen through time," he muttered, his mind racing. Perhaps the other alien, the other Dalek, was in too much disrepair to be useful to Van Statten and, if its communicator had been destroyed, then the first Dalek wouldn't be able to speak to it, "The only survivors."

"You talked about a war?" Van Statten began.

"The Time War. The final battle between my people and the Dalek race."

"But you survived too," the man eyed him.

"Not by choice," he muttered, not seeming to notice the look in Van Statten's eyes.

"This means that those two aliens aren't the _only_ ones on Earth, Doctor, there's _you_ ," Van Statten grinned, "The only one of your kind in existence."

~8~

The lights of Van Statten's examination room flashed on, illuminating the Doctor who had been chained up to a rack and stripped of his shirt and jacket. Van Statten stood behind an instrument, pointing it at the Doctor.

"Now, smile!" he shouted as the instrument shot some sort of red beam over the Doctor's torso, scanning him, causing him to moan in pain and grimace. An image of his ribcage appeared on a wall monitor, his two hearts beating rapidly within it, "Two hearts?" Van Statten frowned, "A binary vascular system," he rolled his eyes, turning to Goddard, "He's not so special after all. He's just like that other one."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The OTHER one? OMG! There's another Time Lord there? Lol, I suppose you already know that given my intro A/N, but let's just pretend we don't know :) The Doctor, at least, will certainly be in for a surprise about just what sort of Time Lord is being held there...
> 
> Next chapter we'll actually meet our new character, however, best keep in mind, she's been locked away for 50 years, always changing hands with the Dalek, just imagine the sort of shape she'll be in given how the Dalek was treated...


	2. Dalek: A Time Lady!

The Doctor's hearts stopped and he looked up in shock at what Van Statten had just said. The _other_ one? The other alien? There was another Time Lord in the building!? How had he not sensed it? He had to get out, find out.

"Nothing new here I can patent," Van Statten muttered.

"So that's your secret," the Doctor called, trying to get through to the man, he needed to find the other Time Lord! "You don't just collect this stuff, you scavenge it."

"This technology has been falling to Earth for centuries," Van Statten scoffed, "All it took was the right mind to use it properly. Oh, the advances I've made from alien junk, you have no idea, Doctor. Broadband? Roswell. Just last year my scientists cultivated bacteria from the Russian Crater, and do you know what they found?" the Doctor looked at him angrily, his mind already racing to what sort of torture they had inflicted on the other Time Lord, "The cure for the common cold. Kept it strictly within the laboratory of course, no need to get people excited. Why sell one cure when I can sell a thousand palliatives?" he smiled smugly.

"Do you know what a Dalek is, Van Statten? A Dalek is _honest_. It does what it was born to do for the survival of its species, that creature in your dungeon is better than you."

"In that case, I will be true to myself and continue," Van Statten replied, walking back to the scanner.

"But if I'm like the other alien. What difference will you find?"

Van Statten shrugged, "Well, for starters, I would assume your reproductive systems are quite different."

The Doctor's eyes, if possible, grew wider…it wasn't a Time _Lord_ …it was a Time _Lady_!

He struggled more in his bonds, needing to get out, find her, he could only imagine what Van Statten had done to her given how he treated the Dalek, "Listen to me!" he shouted, "That thing downstairs is going to kill every last one of us!"

And if the Time Lady fell to Earth with the Dalek, it would know she was there, sucked right out of the War with it. She would be the first one the Dalek went after. He couldn't let that happen. He couldn't let it succeed. He couldn't be the last, not again, not now that there was another of his people. He just...couldn't...

"Nothing can escape the Cage," Van Statten waved him off, running the scanner again, watching as the Doctor writhed in pain.

"But it's woken up! It knows I'm here! It's gonna get out! Van Statten, I swear no one on this base is safe! No one on this planet!"

But the scan just continued to run…

~8~

Adam entered the room just outside the Cage followed by Rose, "Hold it right there!" one of the guards shouted.

Adam just flashed his ID, "Level _3_ access. Special clearance from Mr. Van Statten," they walked past Simmons and entered the Cage, Rose staring intently at the Dalek within, "Don't get too close..." he warned as she started walking towards it.

She looked up, peering into its eyestalk, "Hello?" it just continued to stare, "Are you in pain? My name's Rose Tyler. I've got a friend, he can help. He's called the Doctor. What's your name?"

"Yes," it answered.

"What?" she frowned, concerned.

It raised its eyestalk to look at her, "I _am_ in pain," it said wearily, "They tortured me. But still...they fear me. Do _you_ fear me?"

"No," she shook her head lightly.

It lowered its eyestalk, "I am dying."

"No, we can help!"

"I welcome death. But I am glad...that before I die...I met a human who was not afraid."

Rose looked at it, overwhelmed with sadness and pity, "Isn't there anything I can do?"

"My race is dead. I shall die alone."

Rose blinked back the tears in her eyes before gently reaching out and placing her hand on the Dalek.

"Rose, no!" Adam shouted.

But he was too late.

The place where Rose had put her hand suddenly burned bright orange. She snatched her hand back, looking down at it and then up at the Dalek.

"Genetic material extrapolated, initiate cellular reconstruction!" it shouted, its voice growing stronger, angrier. It burst out of its chains, sparks flying around it.

Simmons ran in, "What the hell have you done?" he turned to the Dalek, one of his devices in hand as it pointed its sucker at him, "Whatcha gonna do? Sucker me to death?"

The Dalek proceeded to do just that, placing the sucker over Simmon's face and sucking his head, cracking his skull as Adam and Rose ran outside, "It's killing him!" Rose shouted at the guards, "Do something!"

"Condition red!" a guard called into the comm., shutting the door to the Cage and sealing it, "Repeat, condition red! This is not a drill!"

~8~

Van Statten looked up at the code red warning coming over the system, the lights flashing, the alarms blaring.

The Doctor, sweating with pain, looked up as well, "Release me if you want to live."

~8~

The Doctor, Van Statten, Goddard, and some guards ran out of the lift and into Van Statten's office. The Doctor spun and faced two of the guards, "Bring the second alien up here," they looked at Van Statten, who seemed about to argue, so the Doctor rounded on the man, "Trust me, if that thing gets out, two Time Lords are better than one!"

Van Statten nodded and the guards ran off.

The Doctor ran over to a monitor that linked down to just outside the Cage, "You've got to keep it in that cell."

"Doctor, it's all my fault," Rose walked up to the camera, having spotted him first.

"I've sealed the compartment," one of the guards stated, "It can't get out, that lock's got a billion combinations."

"The Dalek's a genius," he countered, "It can calculate a thousand billion combinations in one second flat."

Those in the room all turned to look at the door, watching as the Dalek did just that. The doors burst open, Rose and Adam moving into the hall as the two security guards before them took aim, "Open fire!" the main guard shouted.

"Don't shoot it, I want it unharmed!" Van Statten ordered.

"Rose, get out of there!" the Doctor called, but Rose just stood there, watching.

The Dalek advanced upon them, the bullets having no effect at all. The guard turned to his female partner, "De Maggio, take the civilians and get them out alive. That is your job, got that?"

"You, with me," she turned to Rose and Adam, leading them away as the Dalek approached the screen, smashing right through it, cutting off their visual.

"Abandoning the Cage, sir!" the guard called over the audio.

Goddard turned and quickly moved to one of the computers in the office, the Doctor and Van Statten moving to look over her shoulder, "We're losing power. It's draining the base. Oh, my God. It's raiding entire power supplies for the whole of Utah."

"It's downloading," the Doctor replied.

"Downloading what?" Van Statten frowned.

"Sir, the entire West Coast has gone down," Goddard reported.

"It's not just energy," the Doctor said, "That Dalek just absorbed the entire Internet. It knows _everything_."

"The Daleks survive in me!" they heard over the audio just before a beam was fired and things went to static.

"Sir, the cameras in the vault have gone down," Goddard added, trying to check the other visual feeds.

"We've only got emergency power, it's eaten everything else, you've got to kill it now!" the Doctor yelled.

"All guards to converge in the Metaltron cage, immediately," Goddard called into the comm..

~8~

De Maggio led Rose and Adam through another set of guards in a corridor, all in wait for the Dalek, "Civilians! Let them through!"

They ran past, out of sight, the guards turning their guns, ready again, when the guard from the Cage ran into view, "Cover the north wall. Red division, maintain suppressing fire along the perimeter. Blue Division hold…" before he could utter another command the Dalek shot him from behind, the guards immediately opened fire but the bullets seemed to melt before they even touched the metal casing.

The Dalek, though surrounded, simply fired its laser at the guards, killing them all, one by one.

~8~

"Tell them to stop shooting at it!" Van Statten turned to Goddard.

"It's _killing_ them!" she argued.

"They're dispensable, that Dalek is unique," he leaned forward and grabbed the comm., "I don't want a scratch on its bodywork? Do you hear me? Do you hear me?"

The sound of gunshots faded into silence and they realized it was _not_ because they were following his instructions.

Goddard sent a glare at Van Statten before pulling up a map of the base on the computer to track the Dalek, "That's us right below the surface, that's the Cage, and that's the Dalek," she showed the Doctor.

"This museum of yours...have you got any alien weapons?" he asked.

"Lots of them, but the trouble is...the Dalek's between us and them."

"We've got to keep that thing alive," Van Statten stated, "We could just seal the entire vault, trap it down there."

"Leaving everyone trapped with it?" the Doctor rounded on him, "Rose is down there. I won't let that happen. Have you got that?" Van Statten stood up but the Doctor turned back to the computer, pointing at a spot on the map, "It's got to go through this area. What's that?"

"Weapons testing," Goddard answered.

"Give guns to the lawyers, technicians, anyone, everyone. Only then have you got a chance of killing it," Goddard nodded and stood up about to let the Doctor take her place before the computer when the door suddenly burst open and one of the guards walked in, half-dragging, half-supporting someone beside him.

The Doctor's head snapped up to see someone dressed in what had once been a white tunic and white pants, now grey with age and grime, a mane of long, black, dirty and knotted hair falling over their face, hiding them. There was a sort of metal band around the head as well. He half-jumped over the desk to get around it as he made his way towards the figure, the map and computer forgotten. He reached up, his hands moving through the hair to cup the face, turning it to look up at him, the hair falling away.

What he saw made his hearts clench in pain.

Staring back at him, face pale, dark bruises under her dark eyes from want of sleep, lips cracked dry, gaunt and worn, was a Time Lady.

She was breathing heavily, her body shaking as though it were terribly weak, which, judging by the treatment of the Dalek, he ventured she was. He frowned, unable to sense her presence in his mind as was a trait of their people.

His gaze travelled to the band around her head, "What's this?" he asked, ripping it off, but still the feel of her mind was like a fluttering of a feather, barely pressing against his own mind.

"Mental Dampener," Goddard replied quietly, though the Doctor could hear regret in her voice for the state of the woman, "Meant to block brainwaves from getting out."

"Why?"

"Her brainwaves were off the chart!" Van Statten shouted, "We had no idea what her abilities might be, and we weren't about to let her call for help."

The Doctor swallowed heavily at that, just _barely_ resisting the urge to punch the man. The woman shuddered, seeming to try to swallow painfully, "Can you get her a glass of water?" he looked over at Goddard. She nodded, turning and ushering the guard out of the room, telling him to join the others as she stepped to a water fountain in the hall.

The Doctor took the girl as she was passed to him, supporting her as she stumbled, gently helping her over to a chair against the wall, positioning her down there. He knelt before her, reaching up to put his fingers on her temples, closing his eyes to check for any permanent damage while Van Statten watched them suspiciously.

~8~

Rose stopped short at the foot of a flight of stairs, looking up them thankfully, "Stairs! That's more like it!" she turned around as Adam and De Maggio reached her, "It hasn't got legs, it's stuck!"

"It's _coming_!" De Maggio shouted, "Get up!" they ran up the stairs, looking over the banister to watch the Dalek.

It stopped at the foot of the stairs, looking at them.

Adam breathed a small sigh of relief before calling down to it, mockingly, "Great big alien death machine. Defeated by a flight of stairs."

The Dalek's eyestalk turned to look up at them, seeing De Maggio still had her gun at him.

"Now, listen to me," the woman called down, "I demand that you return to your cage. If you want to negotiate, then I guarantee that Mr. Van Statten will be willing to talk. I accept that we imprisoned you and maybe that was wrong. But people have died, and that stops. Right now. The killing stops, have you got that?" no reply, "I demand that you surrender, is that clear?"

"El-e-vate," the Dalek called after a moment, starting to levitate in the air and float up the first few steps of the stairs.

"Oh my God," Rose breathed as it continued up, all of them stunned.

"Adam, get her out of here," De Maggio ordered.

"Come with us, you can't stop it!"

"Someone's got to try," she said, pushing them, "Now get out! Don't look back, just run!"

Adam and Rose ran up the rest of the stairs as the Dalek advanced, De Maggio shooting at it without success. The Dalek fired its laser at her just as Rose and Adam reached the corridor.

~8~

"I thought you were the great expert, Doctor," Van Statten sneered as the Doctor worked at the computer, casting concerned glances over at the Time Lady, who had curled up on her chair, sipping slowly at the water Goddard had gotten, the ginger sitting beside her, "I thought two of you were supposed to be better," he glared at the female alien, "She's not much help, is she?"

"And whose fault is that?" the Doctor shot a glare back at him, so tempted to punch him, again. As it was, he was just _barely_ keeping his temper under control. The threat of the Dalek keeping him focused on the task at hand, at least for now. If Van Statten didn't stop with his comments, well, he couldn't be held accountable for his actions.

"If you're so impressive, then why not just reason with this Dalek? It must be willing to negotiate, there must be _something_ it needs, everything needs something."

"What's the nearest town?" the Doctor asked out of nowhere.

"Salt Lake City."

"Population?"

"One million."

"…dead…" came the raspy whisper on the other side of the room. Both men looked up to see the Time Lady looking down, closing her eyes as though trying to collect herself.

"She's right," the Doctor nodded, eyeing her a moment longer before getting back to his work, "If the Dalek gets out, it'll murder every living creature, that's _all_ it needs."

"But why would it _do_ that?!" Van Statten cried, furious, none too happy with being contradicted and argued with by two aliens.

"Because it honestly believes they should die. Human beings are different, and anything different is wrong. It's the ultimate in racial cleansing and you, Van Statten, you've let it loose!"

A visual suddenly came up on the computer of the weapons testing area, soldiers positioning themselves.

The Doctor leaned over to the comm., "The Dalek's surrounded by a force field. The bullets are melting before they even hit home but it's _not_ indestructible. If you concentrate your fire, you might get through. Aim for the dome, the head, the eyepiece. That's the weak spot."

"Thank you, Doctor," one of the commanders called back, scoffing, "But I think I know how to fight one single tin robot. Positions!" he gave the signal and the soldiers readied their guns. A few moments later Rose and Adam ran in, right into the middle of the area, "Hold your fire! You two, get the hell out of there!" they ran past the guards, making it to an outside door as the Dalek slowly came into view.

The Doctor watched from another side camera as Rose and Adam stopped to watch the Dalek before Adam pulled her away, off screen, the Dalek advancing.

"On my mark..." the commander began as the Dalek looked up at the soldiers, "Open fire!"

They all started shooting at the Dalek, but, like before, the bullets had no effect.

"We've got visual?" Goddard asked, walking over from her position sitting beside the Time Lady to see.

Those who worked for Van Statten, those who had actually _seen_ the other alien, the woman, had been very uneasy about her treatment there. She looked far too human for them to be comfortable with using the same methods on her as the Dalek. She'd been chained up and scanned, barely fed once a day since she arrived. She had little to no human contact except for the occasional lab assistant who checked the readings of her Dampener. It was one of the reasons Van Statten had been so keen to get the Dalek taken care of, they wouldn't have the excuse of wanting to focus on the metal alien first.

"It wants us to see," the Doctor replied, glaring at the screen as the Dalek looked right into the camera.

It slowly started to levitate into the air until it was hovering near the ceiling. It shot at the fire alarm, causing the sprinklers to rain down on the guards. The bullets kept coming but the Dalek paid them no mind, just aiming its laser at a man whose feet were firmly placed on the ground and firing. The rest of the team on the floor fell like flies, the laser electrocuting them all in one go. The only ones left were the commander and another man on the scaffolding.

"Fall back!" the commander shouted, "Fall back!"

The Dalek simply exterminated them both with another electrifying shot of the laser, this time bouncing off the metal.

The office filled with silence as the Doctor blinked, watching the scene in heavy shock.

"Perhaps it's time for a new strategy, maybe we should consider abandoning this place," Van Statten muttered, stunned, giving in.

"Except there's no power to the helipad, sir," Goddard reminded him angrily, "We _can't_ get out."

"You said you could seal the vault," the Doctor recalled, getting up.

"It was designed to be a bunker," Van Statten nodded, going to the computer, "In the event of nuclear war, steel bulkheads…"

"There's not enough power, those bulkheads are massive," Goddard turned to the Doctor.

"We've got emergency power, we can reroute that to the bulkhead doors," the Doctor argued.

"We'd have to bypass the security codes, that would take a computer genius!"

"Good thing you've got me then," Van Statten replied.

" _You_ want to _help_?" the Doctor scoffed at him, glancing at the Time Lady. She had put her feet back on the ground, no longer curled up, but now she was hunched over, her hands gently rubbing her head as her brainwaves slowly got used to not being suppressed once more.

"I don't want to die, Doctor, simple as that. Nobody knows this software better than me."

A screen on the wall suddenly flashed on, the Dalek standing in the middle of the open area.

"Sir..." Goddard called, noticing it first. The Doctor and Van Statten looked up to see it.

"I shall speak _only_ to the Doctor," the Dalek stated.

The Doctor slowly straightened, glancing at Goddard with an infinitesimal nod in the Time Lady's direction, before he fixed his gaze on the Dalek, "You're gonna get rusty," the Doctor commented as Goddard slowly made her way around the desk to stand in front of the woman, blocking her just incase the Dalek could see that end of the room.

"I fed off the DNA of Rose Tyler. Extrapolating the biomass of a time traveler regenerated me."

"What's your next trick?"

"I have been searching for the Daleks."

"Yeah, I saw," he rolled his eyes, "Downloading the Internet," he walked around the table to stand before the screen, "What did you find?"

"I scanned your satellites and radio telescopes…"

"And?" he shook his head, waiting for the inevitable point and realization.

"Nothing," it stated, before its voice rose, sounding somewhat... _scared_ , "Where shall I get my orders now?"

"You're just a soldier without commands."

"Then I shall follow the primary order, the Dalek instinct to destroy! To conquer!"

"What for?" he asked, exasperated, "What's the point?" there was silence a moment, "Don't you see? It's all gone. Everything you were, everything you stood for."

"Then what should I do?"

"Alright then," he nodded slowly, "If you want orders...follow this one: kill yourself."

"The Daleks must survive!"

"The Daleks have _failed_. Why don't you finish the job and make the Daleks extinct? Rid the Universe of your filth, why don't you just die?!" he shouted with a passionate hatred.

The Dalek was silent for a moment, " _You_ would make a good Dalek."

And then the screen went blank as the Doctor stared, dumbstruck.

"No…" came a whisper from the side of the room. The Doctor looked over at the Time Lady sitting there, looking up at him with such understanding in her eyes, "You _wouldn't_."

He blinked, sending her the smallest of nods, before turning to Van Statten, "Seal the vaults."

Van Statten nodded, getting to work as the Doctor joined him, both of them typing away at the computers, "I can leech power off the ground defenses, feed it to the bulkheads," Van Statten told him before smiling, "It's been _years_ since I had to work this fast."

"Are you _enjoying_ this?" the Doctor frowned at him.

"Doctor," Goddard leaned over, "She's still down there."

He nodded, pulling out his sonic and flashing the comm. to connect to Rose's phone.

"This isn't the best time," she answered.

"Where are you?" he asked.

"Level 49," Rose panted, sounding like she was running up the stairs.

"You've got to keep moving. The vault's being sealed off, bulkhead Level 46."

"Can't you stop them closing?"

" _I'm_ the one who's closing them. I can't wait and I can't help you. Now for God's sake, _run_."

"Done it," Van Statten called, "We've got power to the bulkheads."

"The Dalek's right behind them," Goddard reported from her spot observing the Dalek's tracker.

"We're nearly there," Rose gasped, "Give us two seconds."

"Doctor, I can't sustain the power," Van Statten shook his head, "The whole system is failing," the Doctor looked up at him, seeing the red areas of the computer, the power, fading in and out, "Doctor, you've got to close the bulkheads."

The Doctor paused, staring at the key that would close down the bulkhead, trying to muster the strength.

A hand suddenly appeared on his shoulder.

He looked up to see the Time Lady had stood and come beside him, silently offering what little strength she had left for him to do this. As he looked up at her, a reminder of his people, of their loss, of _every_ bit of damage the Daleks could do…

He found it.

"I'm sorry," he breathed to Rose, hitting the key.

The bulkhead began to close.

* * *

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We don't have the Time Lady doing much here, I know, but she HAS been locked up for decades, she wouldn't be in the best condition to start with. But she IS getting her strength back. We got just a hint of her personality here, I'm really going to be trying to make her different from the Professor and Evy. There will definitely be more of her personality coming out in the next chapter...along with a tiny hint of how she's 'different' and 'special,' because I believe anyone paired with the Doctor must have some sort of extraordinary quality to them :)
> 
> I'm also going to be doing something a little different with this series than my Lunar Cycle or Academic Series. In the Lunar Cycle I gave small 'next time' teasers at the end of a chapter, but this story, I'm going to, after the first episode is finished, give you what I'm calling a pyramid, which will be my 'top three,' or the three episodes I'm really looking forward to posting either because of something that happens in them that I love or that I think might shock you or that I feel is important to Angel's story. Along with that I'll give my 'paired pick' which is which 2-parter episode I'm eager to post. And finally my 'solo selection' which is actually going to be the episode I wasn't much of a fan of so you have fair warning about it. So keep an eye out at the end of my next chapter for my 'pyramid' :)


	3. Dalek: Gullible Humans

"Come on!" they could hear Adam shouting to Rose over the comm..

The Doctor stared at the monitor of the computer intently, waiting.

"The vault is sealed," Van Statten confirmed.

The Doctor leapt out of his seat, "Rose, where are you? Rose, did you make it?"

"Sorry," she replied, out of breath, "I was a bit slow," his eyes widened in horrible shock, "See you then, Doctor," he was just silent, "It wasn't your fault," she added, her voice trembling, "Remember that, ok? It _wasn't_ your fault. And do you know what?" she choked up a bit, "I wouldn't have missed it for the world…"

The Time Lady stepped forward, taking the Doctor's hand, squeezing it as tightly as she could, which wasn't much at the moment, but the contact was more than enough, especially when…

"Exterminate!"

The sound of the laser fired.

The Doctor tore off his earpiece as the office fell into a stunned silence.

"I killed her," he breathed.

" _It_ killed her," the woman corrected, squeezing his hand once more.

He looked down to see her looking up at him, a truth in her eye she was willing him to see.

"I'm sorry," Van Statten murmured.

The Doctor turned to him, not letting go of the woman's hand, "I said I'd protect her. She was only here because of _me_ , and you're _sorry_? I could've killed that Dalek _in its cell_. But _you_ stopped me."

"It was the prize of my collection! It actually _looked_ alien!"

"Your _collection_?" the Doctor spat, furious, his hand tightening around that of the Time Lady, "But was it worth it? Worth all those men's deaths? Worth Rose?" no reply, "Let me tell you something, Van Statten. Mankind goes into space to explore. To be part of something greater."

"Exactly!" he stood, "I wanted to touch the stars!"

"You just want to drag the stars down and stick them underground underneath tons of sand and dirt," the Doctor countered vehemently, "And label them. You're about as far from the stars as you can get. And you took her down with you!"

The Time Lady rested her head against the Doctor's arm, his expression softening to a sad, grief-stricken one as he turned to her, knowing _she_ would understand. If she came to Earth with the Dalek, then she had been sucked out of the War with it, she would know what he was feeling, "She was nineteen years old."

She let out a shuddering breath at that, nodding into his shoulder, understanding _exactly_ what he meant.

~8~

Rose closed her eyes ready for the Dalek to kill her, hearing it approach...but then...nothing. She opened her eyes cautiously and looked around, "Go on then, kill me," there was no reply so she spun around angrily, "Why are you doing this?"

"I am armed," it warned her, "I _will_ kill. It is my purpose."

"They're all dead because of you!"

"They are dead because of _us_."

Rose's mouth dropped open, shaken by that, "And now what? What're you waiting for?"

"I feel your fear."

"What do you expect?!"

"Daleks do not fear. _Must_ not fear," it shot a laser at Rose, missing her completely, shooting the wall on either side of her, "You gave me life!" it cried, hysterical, "What else have you given me? I am _contaminated_!"

~8~

Adam stepped out of the lift and into Van Statten's office, the Doctor rounding on him as the Time Lady leaned against the desk, a curious look on her face as she gazed, unseeing, at the monitor on the wall.

"You were quick on your feet, leaving Rose behind!" he shouted.

" _I'm_ not the one who sealed the vault!" Adam cried, indignant.

Suddenly the screen sprang to life, revealing Rose to be standing by the Dalek's side, "Open the bulkhead or Rose Tyler dies," it threatened.

The Doctor took a few steps towards the screen, so relieved to see her, "You're alive!"

"Can't get rid of me," she tried to smile.

"I thought you were dead…"

"Open the bulkhead!" the Dalek cut in.

"Don't do it!" Rose shouted.

"What use are emotions if you will not save the woman you love?"

The Doctor was stunned, staring at the Dalek in confusion. He knew he didn't love Rose, she was a friend, a companion, and in a way he loved her as only that. But to hear a _Dalek_ speaking of _love_ , as though trying to understand it…but that was a Dalek, they would do anything to complete the mission.

He turned to Van Statten, "It killed her once," he walked around to the computer, "I can't let it do it again," and hit the return key, opening the bulkhead for Rose and the Dalek to go through.

"What do we do now?" Van Staten cried, "You bleeding heart, what the hell do we do?"

The Doctor just stared at him wordlessly.

"Kill it when it gets here!" Adam said.

"All the guns are useless and the alien weapons are in the vault," Goddard reminded him.

"Only the catalogued ones," Adam replied.

Van Statten turned to him, eyebrows raised, while Adam just looked back at him apologetically.

The Doctor nodded, turning to the Time Lady, "Stay here with them," he nodded at Goddard and Van Statten.

"No," she shook her head.

"You're still recovering. You're not stron…"

"I'm strong enough for this."

"Listen, we haven't got time…"

"I'm going with you," she cut in, eyeing him intently, "That Dalek…" she nodded at the monitor, blinking back tears, "It killed my sister...in front of my eyes. I'll stand at the sidelines if you wish...but I'm _going_ ," he looked at her, recalling the war, experiencing the same loss she felt with friends…he nodded, taking her hand, and heading out with Adam.

~8~

The Doctor stood in Adam's workroom, going through a basket of the un-catalogued weapons while the Time Lady stood off to the side, leaning on the work table, her hand absently rubbing her chest as her hearts beat fiercely.

"Broken," he commented, lifting one and chucking it aside to take another, "Broken," he chucked that one too and grabbed one more, "Hairdryer."

"Mr. Van Statten tends to dispose of his staff," Adam explained, watching him, "And when he does he wipes their memory. I kept this stuff in case I needed to fight my way out one day."

"What, _you_ in a _fight_?" the Doctor scoffed, eyeing him, "I'd like to see _that_."

"I could do," Adam pouted, mildly offended.

"What're you gonna do, throw your A-Levels at 'em?" he retorted before picking up the last gun, "Oh, yes. Lock and load!" he looked over at the Time Lady, who nodded at him, and they were off…

~8~

Rose and the Dalek stood in the lift to Van Statten's office, the atmosphere very tense, as Rose watched the Dalek's laser arm twitch, "I'm _begging_ you, don't kill them. You didn't kill me."

The Dalek spun its eyestalk to Rose so fast she had to duck back out of the way to avoid it, "But why not?" it asked her, "Why are you alive? My function is to _kill_. What am I? What _am_ I?"

The door opened to reveal Van Statten standing there, waiting.

"Don't move!" Rose warned, "Don't do anything, it's beginning to question itself."

The Dalek advanced toward Van Statten, "Van Statten. You _tortured_ me. Why?"

Van Statten backed away, clearly terrified, "I wanted to help you, I just…I don't know, I…I was just trying to _help_. I thought if we could get through to you, if we could mend you…I wanted you better, I'm sorry," he glanced back as he was backed against a wall, "I'm so sorry! I swear! I just wanted you to talk!"

"Then hear me talk now. Exterminate! Exterminate!"

Van Statten winced, preparing.

"Exterminate!"

"Don't do it!" Rose rushed over, "Don't kill him!" the Dalek spun to face her as she looked straight into its eyestalk, "You don't have to do this anymore. There must be something _else_. Not just killing, what else is there? What d'you want?"

The Dalek turned back to Van Statten and then to Rose, "I want freedom."

~8~

Rose walked down the corridor of Floor 01 with the Dalek, stopping in the center as it fired a laser at the ceiling making a hole through which sunlight flooded the room, shining on them, "You're out," she told it, "You made it," she looked up and smiled, "Never thought I'd see the sunlight again."

"How...does...it...feel?" it wondered.

A moment later, Rose stepped back as the Dalek opened up its casing to reveal the mutated creature within. It looked like a peach octopus with a deflated brain, one eye, and tentacles. It lifted one of its feelers out towards the sunlight. Rose gazed at it, stunned, until a voice behind her made her jump.

"Get out of the way!" the Doctor shouted.

She spun around to see him holding a gun, pointing it at the Dalek, a woman with dark hair in dirty clothes standing behind him to the side. She stared at him in shock, making no move.

"Rose, get out of the way, now!"

"No!" she shook her head, "'Cos I won't let you do this!"

"That thing killed _hundreds_ of people."

"It's not the one pointing the gun at me," she countered coldly.

"I've _got_ to do this. I've got to _end_ it. The Daleks _destroyed_ my home, my people!"

"Look at it," she stepped aside and gestured towards it.

"What's it doing?" he asked, confused.

"It's the sunlight. That's all it wants!"

"But it can't..." he shook his head, his voice shaking.

"It couldn't kill Van Statten, it couldn't kill me, it's _changing_. What about you, Doctor? What the hell are _you_ changing into?"

The Doctor lowered the gun, looking completely lost, "I couldn't..." he breathed, close to tears, as Rose stared at him. The Time Lady just kept her eyes on the Dalek as she had from the moment they arrived, "I wasn't..." he looked at the Dalek and back to Rose, "Oh, Rose. I thought they were all _dead_."

"Why do we survive?" the Dalek asked him.

"I don't know."

"I am the last of the Daleks," the Dalek replied, making an effort to speak before its suction arm twitched at them, "But you are not last of your kind."

The Doctor glanced at the woman behind him, just staring at the Dalek, shaking, before he glanced back at it, "No, I'm not. Not anymore."

Rose gasped, realizing the woman was a Time Lord as well.

"It it not fair."

"I know. And I'm sorry."

"You see," Rose turned to the Dalek, "If one of _his_ people survived, maybe one of _yours_ did too!"

"You believe so?" the Dalek asked.

"Can always hope," she smiled gently down at it.

"Humans...feel...hope?"

"Yeah."

"Humans…" it began, struggling to speak, "Humans are so…"

Rose started to smile.

"Gullible!" the Dalek shouted and before anyone could move, it fired a laser straight at the Time Lady, striking her in the chest, the force throwing her back.

Rose jumped away, scared of the sudden move, when the Doctor fired, shooting the Dalek dead in retaliation. She let out a shuddering breath, her eyes wide, staring at the blasted remains of the Dalek, absolutely stunned. She had _defended_ it, stood in the way of the Doctor killing it, _protected_ it…only for it to try and kill the woman instead. The woman! She looked over at the Doctor to see him already on his knees before the fallen woman who had started to glow orange.

"What's happening?" she shouted, running over.

The Doctor didn't answer, just stood up and pulled her back, away from the woman as a blast of orange exploded around her. Rose flinched and covered her eyes from the brightness.

A moment later the woman sat up with a gasp, the Doctor quickly kneeling at her side again, rubbing her back as she took a few deep breaths, "Alright there?" he asked her, just a hint of laughter in his voice, laughter of relief, of joy.

The woman opened her mouth to reply when a small breath of orange escaped from it. She gave a little laugh and turned to the Doctor, "Been better."

He smiled widely, helping her stand, shaky though she was, getting used to her new legs, still a bit off from the force of the regeneration. He took the time to look at her now, take in the new woman she'd become. Her hair was a warm gold, straight, falling to an inch or two past her shoulders, her eyes a dark green with flecks of gold in them. She was very fair, though it may have just been the time spent underground that had made her so pale. She was only two inches taller than she had been from what he could tell.

"Fantastic," he shook his head.

~8~

Goddard walked slowly up to Van Statten as he stood in the hallway, several guards behind him. She nodded and they grabbed him by the shoulders, pushing him backwards as she followed them at a brisk walk.

"What the hell are you doing?!" he cried.

"Two hundred personnel _dead_ , and all because of you, _sir_ ," she replied coldly, "Take him away, wipe his memory, and leave him by the road someplace."

"You can't do this to me! I am _Henry Van Statten_!"

"And by tonight, Henry Van Statten will be a homeless, brainless junkie living on the streets of San Diego, Seattle, Sacramento," she turned away with a flourish and a very satisfied smile, "Someplace beginning with 'S.'"

~8~

The Doctor stood in the exhibit room, smiling, watching as the Time Lady stood before the TARDIS, looking at the box with tears in her eyes, a small, utterly _happy_ , smile on her face that warmed his hearts. She slowly lifted her hand and placed it on the corner of it.

"Little piece of home," he crossed his arms, "Better than nothing."

She tilted her head, before her eyes widened, "She's a Type 40!"

"Yep," he nodded.

She squinted in thought, "The Chameleon Circuit is broken though, isn't it?"

He frowned, "How do you know?"

"A 50s telephone box, doesn't exactly blend in, does it?" she asked, looking back at him with a small smirk, before turning to the box and sighing, "She's so old, but still has _so much_ life to her. You've seen much with her," she gently stroked the side of the wood, "You broke the Circuit early on...on your very first trip..."

He stepped up beside her, looking intently down at her, "How could you _possibly_ know that?"

She dropped her hand and stepped back, shaking her head out of her thoughts to look at him, "My family were responsible for the TARDISes on Gallifrey. Growing them, nurturing them, harvesting them, preparing them, and repairing them. My mum always used to say I had an affinity with them, could always read them."

"Used to?" Rose called quietly from her spot a few feet away, where she'd been watching the whole interaction.

"Besides the War," the woman replied, smiling sadly at Rose, "She was helping to transport a few TARDISes to the southern hemisphere when the shuttle was attacked. The pilots had to crash the ship, killed all of them and destroyed the TARDISes, just to keep them out of enemy hands. She died just before the Naming Ceremony."

"Naming Ceremony?" Rose asked.

"It's a tradition on Gallifrey," the Doctor explained, "To pick your name or title if you wish," he blinked, as though _just_ realizing something, and turned to the Time Lady, "What's your name?"

"The Angel," she replied.

"The...Angel?" Rose raised an eyebrow. That was a bit pretentious.

"My mum...she used to call me her angel," she said quietly, "And when she died just before the Ceremony…it seemed right. Fitting."

"It's beautiful," the Doctor praised, before grinning broadly, glancing at the TARDIS, "Do you want to see inside?"

"I'd love to," she beamed, she never thought she'd see a TARDIS again.

"We'd better get out!" Adam called, jogging up to them just as the Doctor was about to open the door, "Van Statten's disappeared...they're closing down the base," the Doctor turned to face him, his arms folded, not very pleased with the interruption, "Goddard says they're going to fill it full of _cement_! Like it never existed!"

"About time," Rose agreed with the decision.

"I'll have to go back home."

"Better hurry up then," the Doctor checked his watch, "Next flight to Heathrow leaves at 1500 hours."

"Adam was saying that all his life he's wanted to see the stars..." Rose hinted hopefully at the Doctor.

"Tell him to go and stand outside then," he replied. He glanced over at the Angel, who was frowning with a curious look at Adam. It wasn't a nasty look, like she was peeved that he had interrupted or might be coming, but more...concerned and almost...reluctant for some reason.

"He's all on his own, Doctor. And he _did_ help."

"He _left_ you down there!"

"So did _you_!"

"What're you talking about?" Adam cut in, "We've got to _leave_!"

"Rose, he's a bit pretty," the Doctor remarked, his eyes on Rose as the Angel smiled at their banter.

"I hadn't noticed," Rose replied innocently.

The Doctor raised his eyebrows skeptically and turned to the TARDIS, "On your own head."

"What're you _doing_?" Adam asked as the Doctor entered the box, "She said ' _cement_ ,'" he added when the captive alien entered as well, "She wasn't joking, we're going to get sealed in…" followed by Rose, "Doctor?" he called, very concerned for their sanity, "What're you doing standing inside a box? Rose?" he peered through the doors and stepped inside, only to see a huge room within. He blinked in shock.

The Doctor got the TARDIS back to the Vortex, leaving Rose to explain everything to Adam, before turning to the Angel, "So?" he asked her, grinning in anticipation.

"She's _beautiful_ ," she whispered, earning a beam from him, "A treasure…"

She stepped forward, placing her hand on the rotor, whispering mentally to the TARDIS, as she often did to communicate with them on Gallifrey, ' _Hello old friend…_ '

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Were you expecting that? Regeneration right at the start? I hope not. I'm definitely going to try to throw things out there you won't see coming :) The story title actually fits really well with what I have planned for this part of the saga, the Doctor and Angel are going to discover quite a bit about each other, about themselves, and about what lies within them :)
> 
> As for Angel, well...there's definitely a reason behind her being blonde. Which we'll find out in Father's Day and a few other key chapters :) Actually...I can safely say her hair color, at least at first, will definitely be something to note :)
> 
> As for my pyramid:
> 
> 3...The Long Game, Boom Town, The Parting of the Ways  
> 2...The Empty Child/The Doctor Dances (Gotta love Jack lol)  
> 1...hmm...I really don't have one since I'm only posting 7 episodes for this series, but I guess...it might be The Empty Child too, before Jack really joins up with the Doctor I thought it was a little slow :(


	4. The Long Game: Cryptic Words

The TARDIS materialized in the corridor of a space station, the Doctor and Rose stepping out quickly while Adam helped Angel put her jacket on inside. The Doctor had taken her to the wardrobe to find a different set of clothes to wear besides the old white prison garb from Van Statten. She had selected a white tank top with tan pants and an old, crocheted, lacy, long-sleeved duster in TARDIS blue to wear over it. She'd even taken to wearing her hair back, twisted in a sort of claw clip with a bit of hair falling over it to hide the clip.

"So, it's 200,000," the Doctor explained to Rose rather quickly, "It's a spaceship...no wait a minute," he gave it one more glance around, "Space _station_ , and uh...go and try that gate over…" he pointed ahead, "There. Off you go!"

He leaned against the TARDIS, waiting casually, as Rose looked over at him, "200,000?"

"200,000."

"'Kay," she grinned, knocking on the TARDIS door before calling out, "Adam? Angel? Out you come!"

Adam stepped out, his mouth dropping open, "Oh my God…" he breathed, taking a few steps into the station, looking around while Angel just stood in the TARDIS doorway, smiling softly.

"Don't worry, you'll get used to it," Rose waved him off.

"Where are we?"

"Good question," Rose looked around, as though examining the area, "Let's see. So, um...judging by the architecture, I'd say we're around the year 200,000," Adam nodded, still mind boggled at the sight, "If you listen...engines. We're on some sort of space station. Yeah. _Definitely_ a space station. It's a bit warm in here, they could turn the heating down...tell you what, let's try that gate. Come on!" she pointed the way the Doctor had indicated before stepping past Adam, tugging him on as she led him off.

Angel leaned a bit more out the door, looking at the Doctor pointedly as she rested her head on the side of the door, just smiling at him.

"What?" he asked with a grin of his own.

"That was a nice thing for you to do," she remarked.

He eyed her a moment, realizing she knew what he and Rose had done, "How did you know?" she just continued to smile at him and he laughed, "I just like messing with humans."

Now it was _her_ turn to laugh, stepping out of the TARDIS...only to stop short, a frown on her face.

He looked over at her, seeing her expression, "Everything alright?"

"I dunno," she muttered, "Just feels…slow…"

He raised an eyebrow at her remark, not quite sure what she meant.

"Sorry," she made a face, shaking her head before she looked up at him, "That made _no_ sense, did it?"

He laughed at that before holding out his arm for her to take as they walked off to join Adam and Rose at the gate.

Rose smiled at them as they approached and opened the gate, leading the way into the room beyond, an observation deck that overlooked the Earth, "Here we go!" Rose laughed, "And this is..." she paused, awestruck, looking down upon the Earth, Adam holding onto a small railing for support as he joined her, "...I'll let the Doctor describe it."

The Doctor just smiled and turned to Angel, "I think we should let Angel do the honors, don't you?"

Rose nodded, "Definitely."

Angel smiled and looked at the Earth, "The Fourth Great and Bountiful Human Empire. Planet Earth at its most magnificent. Covered with mega-cities, with five moons and a population 96 billion. The heart of a galactic domain which stretches across a _million_ planets, a million _species_ ," she let out a breath, shaking her head in amazement, "And there's mankind, right in the middle. The indomitable humans."

"Perfect!" the Doctor cheered.

And then there was a sigh and a thump behind them as Adam fainted.

None of them bothered to fully turn around, though Angel _did_ cast a worried glance back over her shoulder at the boy.

"He's your boyfriend," the Doctor smirked at Rose.

"Not anymore," she replied glumly.

~8~

"Come on Adam!" the Doctor cheered as they walked along the space station, his arm around Adam's shoulder, "Open your mind."

"But not too much," Angel warned with a laugh as she and Rose followed along, "Or you might not be able to close it!"

The Doctor laughed at that before continuing, "You're gonna like this fantastic period of history. The Human Race at its most intelligent, culture, art, politics. This era has got fine food, good manners…"

"Out of the way!" a man shouted rudely as the floor they were on suddenly sprang to life around them. Food stalls opened up and people bustled past to line up, all chattering.

"One at a time..." a chef before them called as the other stall keepers began to take orders, the place becoming busy rather fast, "Oi! You, mate! Stop pushing. Get back. I SAID, back!"

Rose glanced over at the food behind the people and turned to the Doctor, grimacing a bit, " _Fine_ cuisine?"

"My watch must be wrong," he wrong footed a moment before checking, he hadn't corrected Angel because everything she'd said was right, or so he thought, but looking at his watch, he nodded, "No, it's fine...weird."

"Guess your history's not as good as you thought it was," Rose nudged Angel playfully.

"Our history's perfect."

"Well, obviously not..."

"But it _is_ ," Angel cut in, looking around, confused as well, "Because this _is_ 200,000…"

"They're all human," Adam remarked, "What about the millions of planets? The millions of species? Where are _they_?"

"Good question," the Doctor said, "Actually, that IS a good question," he jovially put his arm around Adam's shoulder again, "Adam, me old mate, you must be starving."

"No, I'm just a bit time sick."

"Nah, you just need a bit of grub," the Doctor leaned forward to the chef, "Oi, mate, how much is a cronk burger?"

"Two credits twenty, sweetheart," he answered, "Now, join the queue."

"Money. We need money," he turned and walked over to a cash point, sonic ready, "Have to use a cash point," Rose, Adam, and Angel followed him, watching as he held his sonic to the cash point and a metal strip was deposited. He took it and gave it to Adam, "There you go, pocket money. Don't spend it all on sweets."

He grabbed Angel's hand and pulled her off when Adam called back, "How does it work?"

The Doctor turned around, "Go and find out! Stop nagging me! The thing is, Adam, time travel's like visiting Paris. You can't just read the guide book, you've got to throw yourself in. Eat the food, use the wrong verbs, get charged double, and end up kissing complete strangers…" Rose laughed as Adam stared at him, Angel just seemed bemused, "...or is that just me? Stop asking questions, go on, _do_ it!" he waved the boy off, watching as he turned and walked into the crowd, Rose following, "Off you go then!" he called to her, "Your first date."

"You're going to get a smack, you are," Rose pointed warningly at him, "And I wouldn't be talking if I were you," she gave him a playful look as she gestured between him and Angel, before turning around with a laugh.

The Doctor just shook his head at her, smiling, waiting till she had disappeared in the crowd for his grin to fade, becoming more thoughtful.

"Why doesn't she want you to talk?" Angel frowned at him, slightly confused by Rose's words.

The Doctor blinked and looked at her, a very faint red color in his cheeks now, "Oh, no reason. Talk too much. That's me," he beamed at her, before taking her hand and walking off with her.

"I like it when you talk."

He stopped short and looked back at her, "Really?"

She shrugged, "You say very interesting things."

He smiled softly and continued on, just looking around for someone that might help, when he spotted two women walking past, talking, "Er...this is gonna sound daft, but can you tell me where I am?" he asked, stepping over to them.

"Floor 139..." the black woman of the pair gestured to the wall over them where there was, in fact, a very large '139' carved into it, "Could they write it any bigger?"

"Probably," Angel nodded.

The girls stared at her.

"That was rhetorical," the Doctor told her quietly with a small smile.

He'd noticed, from how she reacted to things Rose and Adam said in passing on their way over, that she wasn't quite...with it...when it came to humans and interaction in general. He supposed it had something to do with being locked away for 50 years, little human contact would do that to a person. She seemed to take some things literally, get confused by certain phrases, sometimes answer questions that didn't need to be answered, like now. He thought it was highly amusing...and rather adorable too.

"Oh," she nodded, turning to the women, "Sorry."

"Floor 139 of what?" the Doctor asked, getting back to the question he'd asked before.

"Must've been a hell of a party," the black woman remarked, eyeing him oddly.

"Oh, you're on Satellite 5," the other young woman, a lovely brunette, explained with a smile.

"What's Satellite 5?" he continued.

"Come on, how could you get on board _without_ knowing where you are?" the first woman scoffed.

"Look at me, I'm stupid," he grinned.

"Hang on, wait a minute, are you a test?" the second woman asked, looking between them, "Some sort of management test kind of thing?"

"You've got us," he nodded, taking out the psychic paper to show them, "Well done. You're too clever for me."

"We were warned about this in basic training," she turned to her friend, "All workers have to be versed in company promotion."

"Right," the first woman replied, turning to the Doctor and Angel, now all business, "Fire away, ask your questions. If it gets me to Floor 500 I'll do anything."

"Why, what happens on Floor 500?" he asked.

"The walls are made of gold. And you should know...Mr. Management."

"Are you sure?" Angel asked.

"Am I sure about what?"

"That the walls are made of _gold_. I mean, it could be Fool's Gold, or lead," she blinked, her gaze getting just a bit distant, "…the dead…" she frowned, "Ice?"

"What?" the Doctor looked at her, a bit concerned with where her mind seemed to be going.

She shook her head, blinking a few times before glancing at him, "Sorry, my thoughts...got away from me."

The first woman nodded, eyeing her curiously, before putting her attention back to the Doctor, sensing he was more in charge, "So...this is what we do," she walked a few feet away, towards some screens where there were various news bits playing, "Latest news...sandstorms on the new Venus archipelago. Two hundred dead. Glasgow water riots into their third day...spacelane 37 closed by sunspot activity. And over on the Bad Wolf channel, the Face of Boe has just announced he's pregnant..."

Angel frowned and looked at the channel displaying the Face of Boe, recalling how Van Statten's helicopter had been called Bad Wolf One, she'd heard it over the loud speakers enough times during her time there.

"I get it," the Doctor cut in, "You broadcast the news."

"We ARE the news," she corrected as the second woman smiled nervously at the Doctor, "We're the journalists. We write it, package it, and sell it."

~8~

In a control room high above Floor 139, a camera picked up a view of this very conversation.

"600 channels all coming out of Satellite 5," the black woman continued, "Broadcasting everywhere."

A man with white hair stood there, watching the goings on, pondering the moment, "Something...is wrong. Something...fictional," he leaned over the shoulder of a man, covered in specks of ice, sitting before him, and pointed at the monitor, "Those people…"

"Nothing happens in the whole Human Empire without it going though us," the woman added.

"Security check," he ordered the man, "Go _deep_."

~8~

"All staff are reminded that the canteen area now has self-cleaning tables," a voice said over the speaker as Adam and Rose mulled about in the canteen, "Thank you!"

Adam sat at a crowded table, fidgeting, looking more than a little overwhelmed, as Rose stood next to him, offering him a paper cup, "Try this," she said, "It's called 'zaffic,' it's nice. It's like a, um, slush puppy."

"What flavor?" he asked.

"Um..." she took a sip of it, trying to work it out, before frowning, "Sort of…beef?"

"Oh, my God..." he moaned, shaking his head at how odd that was as Rose laughed, "It's like everything's _gone_. Home, family, everything."

Rose looked at him, concerned though completely able to understand what he was going through. She pulled her phone out of her pocket, "This helps...the Doctor gave it a bit of a top-up. Who's back home, your mum and dad?"

"Yeah."

"Phone 'em up," she handed him the phone.

"But that's 198,000 years ago."

"Honestly, try it. Go on!"

He took the phone, "Is there a code for planet Earth?"

"Just dial!" she laughed.

And so he did, putting it to his ear only to hear, "I'm sorry we're not in…" his mother's answering machine.

"It's on!" his eyes widened in shock.

"Please leave a message," it finished, "Thanks, bye!"

The tone sounded, snapping him out of his shock, "Hi. It's...it's me. I've sort of gone...travelling. I met these people...and we've gone travelling together. But, um...I'm fine...and I'll call you later. Love you. Bye," he ended the call gleefully, "That is just…"

Suddenly an alarm sounded and everyone started to abandon the canteen, Rose and Adam just looking around, unsure of what to do.

"Oi!" the Doctor shouted from a small distance away, "Mutt and Jeff! Over here!"

Rose smiled and quickly got up to join them while Adam paused a moment, holding Rose's phone, before slipping it into his pocket and following.

~8~

The white haired man was anxiously awaiting the results of the security check.

"Security check cleared," the computer announced.

"No, something's _wrong_ ," he stressed, "I can _taste_ it. Tiny little shift in the information. Someone down there shouldn't be here," he looked at the monitor, showing the small group standing together, before leaning down between two staff, "Double check. Triple check. Follow them."

~8~

The Doctor, Angel, Rose, and Adam stood off to the side in a white room with what looked like an octagonal table in the middle with a reclining sort of high-tech chair on top of it. There were a few humans sitting cross-legged around the table before two pads with hand marks on them.

The black woman stepped to the middle of the platform, addressing the room, "Now everybody behave. We have a management inspection," she smiled over at the Time Lords, "How do you want it? By the book?"

"Oh, right from scratch, thanks," he nodded.

She turned away, "Ok, so, ladies, gentlemen, multisex, undecided, or robot, my name is Cathica Santini Kadainy," she looked at the Doctor again, "That's Cathica with a 'C,' in case you want to write to Floor 500 praising me, and please... _do_..." the Doctor grinned and gave a non-committal jerk of his head, "Now, please feel free to ask any questions. The process of news gathering must be open, honest, and be non-biased. That's company policy," she shot a smile at the Doctor, who nodded back again.

"Actually...it's the law," the second woman from before added.

"Yes, thank you _,_ Suki," Cathica cut in, irritated, "Ok," she took a breath, "Keep it calm...don't show off for the guests...here we go," took a breath and got onto the chair, lying back, "And...engage safety..."

The staff moved to hold their hands out over their pads, the eight walls of the room lighting up in the process, the group looking around at it. Cathica snapped her fingers and a small door opened in her forehead, revealing just a hint of her brain. The Doctor looked mildly disgusted while Rose looked startled, Adam, however, leaned forward to try and get a better look while Angel, for some reason, seemed unsurprised. The staff placed their hands down on the pads and closed their eyes.

"And 3...2...and spike," Cathica called moments before the device over the chair shot a blue light straight down to her brain.

"Compressed information, streaming into her," the Doctor commented as they observed, "Reports from every city, every country, every planet, and they all get packaged inside her head. She becomes part of the software. Her brain IS the computer."

"If it all goes through her, she must be a genius," Rose said.

"Nah. She wouldn't remember any. There's too much, her head would blow up," he walked forward slowly, heading around the octagon, circling it as Rose and Angel followed, "The brain's the processor. As soon as it closes, she forgets."

"So, what about all these people round the edge?"

"They've all got tiny little chips in their head, connecting them to her," the Doctor said as Rose knelt down by one, "And they transmit 600 channels. Every single fact in the empire beams out of this place," he finished his circle, coming to stand next to Angel, leaning against the railing beside Adam, "Now, _that's_ what I call power."

"Cathica…" Angel trailed gently, eyeing the woman, "It's a very nice name. Sounds almost a bit like 'cat' in the beginning."

"You know what they say about that though," Rose sighed, getting up, "Curiosity killed the cat."

"Not always. Perhaps, one day, curiosity will lead a cat to something that could save it instead," she glanced back over at the group of people processing the news and shook her head, speaking quietly to herself, "They don't move…they _never_ move…"

The Doctor looked at her curiously, having been the only one to hear her last muttering.

~8~

"Analysis confirmed," the computer stated, "Security breech."

"I _knew_ it!" the white haired man called gleefully, "Which one? It's someone inside that room, which one?"

The camera shifted from person to person gathered around Cathica, "Isolating breech."

"Come on, show me. Who is it?"

The camera focused on the small group of travellers standing off to the side.

~8~

"You alright?" Rose turned to Adam.

"I can see her _brain_ ," he frowned, looking just a bit queasy.

"Do you want to get out?"

"No...no," he shook his head quickly, "This technology, it's...it's amazing."

"This technology's wrong," the Doctor cut in.

Rose looked over, "Trouble?"

"Oh yeah," he nodded, catching her eye.

Rose smiled excited.

When there was a slight shuddering sound and Suki twitched.

~8~

"That's it!" the white haired man called, pointing at the monitor, laughing triumphantly, "Yes! _She's_ the liar," the camera focused on Suki, "Intercept and scan. Gotcha."

~8~

Suki gasped, pulling her hands off the pad as though it had shocked her. The other members of the staff were forced to lift their own hands too, the lights on the walls turning off. The compressed information stopped streaming into Cathica, the door on her head closing as Suki rubbed her hands, breathing heavily.

"Come off it, Suki," Cathica turned to her, annoyed, "I wasn't even halfway, what was that for?"

"Sorry, must've been a glitch..." she remarked quietly as Cathica just stood up.

~8~

"Her information's been tampered with," the man remarked, still watching the monitor intently, "There's a second biography hidden underneath..."

There was a sudden roaring above him and he spun around, looking up at something on the ceiling.

"Yes, sir?" he called to more roaring, "Absolutely, sir. Yeah, well, her data was encrypted so there's no way we could've found her sooner," now there was _angry_ roaring, "Yeah. I…sorry, sir," he gave a small thumbs up, "Absolutely," before spinning urgently to one of the women working, "Get her up here. _Now_!"

~8~

A speaker suddenly blared in the room, "Promotion!" with a projection starting up in the wall.

"This is it," Cathica's eyes widened, gripping her hands together, praying hard, "Come on. God, make it me. Come on, say my name," the small group looked over at her with mild concern, but she just screwed her eyes shut and pleaded, "Say my name, say my name..." she opened her eyes, hopeful...

"Promotion for...Suki Macrae Cantrell," the words flashed on the projection as Suki's mouth dropped open. Cathica, though, looked like her world had fallen apart, "Please proceed to Floor 500."

Suki stood up and stared at the project, not sure if that had really just happened, "I don't believe it..." she breathed, her disbelief evident, "Floor 500..."

"How the hell did you manage that?" Cathica glared at her, "I'm above you!"

"I don't know, I just applied on the off-chance...and they've said yes!"

"That's so not fair. I've been applying to Floor 500 for _three years_!"

"What's Floor 500?" Rose leaned over to ask the Doctor.

"The walls are made of gold," he said grimly.

~8~

The Doctor, Rose, Angel, and Cathica were standing by the lift on Floor 139 to say goodbye to Suki not even an hour later.

"Cathica, I'm gonna miss you!" Suki cried to Cathica, "Floor 500..." she spun around to the Doctor and Angel, "Thank you!"

"But we didn't do anything," Angel shook her head.

"Well, you're my lucky charms!" Suki smiled.

"Alright!" the Doctor nodded, "I'll hug anyone!"

Suki laughed and hugged the Doctor and then Angel as Cathica looked angrily anywhere but at her.

"Come on," Rose walked over to Adam, who was sitting a small ways away, "It's not that bad…"

"What, with the...the head thing?" he asked.

"Yeah, well she's closed it now!"

"Yeah but...it's everything. It freaks me out. And I just need to...if I could just..." he struggled to find the words, "...cool down. Sort of, acclimatize."

"How d'you mean?"

"Maybe...I could just go and sit on the observation deck?" he suggested, looking at her, "Would that be alright?" she nodded, "Soak it in, you know, pretend I'm a citizen of the year 200,000..."

"Do you want me to come with you?" she asked, concerned.

"No, no, you stick with the Doctor and Angel. You'd rather be with them anyway," Rose just looked away, knowing it was true, "It's gonna take a better man than me to get between you and them. Anyway, I'll be on the deck."

He got up and turned to go when Rose fumbled in her pocket, "Here you go...take the TARDIS key. You know, just in case it gets a bit too much."

"Yeah, like it's not weird in there," he laughed.

Rose just gave him the key anyway. He nodded in thanks and walked off, leaving Rose standing alone, a small satisfied grin coming to his face as he walked off, not noticing Angel glance over at him as he disappeared around a corner.

"Oh, my God, I've got to go!" Suki's eyes widened, "I can't keep them waiting…" she scooped up her bag and dashed into the lift, "I'm sorry!" she shouted back as it pinged and opened, running inside, "Say goodbye to Steve for me!"

The Doctor and Rose smiled at her as the lift doors began to close, Angel smiling more sadly.

"Bye!" she waved.

The Doctor and Rose waved cheerily while Cathica looked away, sour, "Good riddance," she muttered.

"You're talking like you'll never see her again," the Doctor turned to her, "She's only going upstairs."

"We won't. Once you go to Floor 500 you never come back."

The Doctor looked over at the closed lift doors with a frown. He glanced at Angel to see her eyeing it as well before they noticed Cathica had walked off. They turned and quickly dashed off after her, Rose following as well, "Have you ever been up there?" he asked.

"No," she remarked bitterly, "You need a key for the lift, and you only get a key with promotion. No one gets to 500 except for the chosen few."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So...much more of a hint to what makes Angel 'different' and 'special' in this chapter. Can you spot it? We'll find out for sure what it is (part of it anyway lol) by the end of this episode :) Also, I picture Angel to look something like Laura Vandervoort but with green eyes and just slightly less defined cheekbones. I actually had a cover of Sarah Michelle Gellar, and that's had something to do with the delay in cover, I associate her too much with Buffy and I didn't want Angel (lol Buffy and Angel) to come across as another Professor (a strong fighter and all). I mean she IS strong in her own way but it's different than the Professor, but then I remembered LV was in both Smallville and the show V as an alien and was like, why not try her as a Time Lady? :)


	5. The Long Game: Pipes and Plumbing

Suki paced agitatedly in the lift, so nervous and excited until it finally reached Floor 500 and the doors opened. She looked out beyond the doors only to see the floor covered in frost and snow…snow which was gently falling from the ceiling. She carefully picked up her bag and walked out of the lift into a corridor. She looked around nervously when the doors bleeped and shut behind her, trapping her. She turned and threw her weight against them, trying to open them, scared, but it was useless. She sighed, turning back around and pulling a torch from her bag. She turned it on and cautiously started to walk down the corridor.

A small sound reached her from the end of it and she slowly followed it, only to find herself in what looked like a disused room much like the one she worked in, octagonal platform, chair, and all. She crept forward, placing her hand on the chair...only for a rotten corpse to fall into view. She turned around, seeing eight other corpses sitting around the edges of the platform.

She fled from the room, pushing through the hanging plastic, hurrying away, when she caught sight of a light down the hall. She ran towards it, finding herself in what seemed like a control room or a security room. There was a line of people sitting at the controls, their hands on the pads, unmoving, as a man stood there with white hair, waving her over.

She put the torch back in her bag and walked up some steps towards him, "Who're you?"

"I'm the Editor," he introduced.

"What's happening? There're...bodies out there, what's going on?"

"Well, while we're asking questions, would you please confirm your name," he began, snapping his fingers. A projection of Suki appeared between them, clearly recorded from when she had applied for her job.

"My name is Suki Macrae Cantrell," the projection stated, "I was born 1-9-9 apostrophe 8-9 in the Independent Republic of Morocco…"

"Liar," the Editor snapped.

Suki looked over at him, shocked.

"Hobbies include reading and archaeology. I'm not an expert or anything, I just like digging."

"Liar," he repeated as she started to eye him with more boldness. He snapped his fingers and the recording sped up to a different point.

"I want to work for Satellite 5 because my sister can't afford University," the Editor just shook his head at that, "And the pay scheme is really good…"

"Liar!" he shouted as she stared at him defiantly now, "Let's look at the _facts_ , shall we?" he snapped his fingers again and another projection started, this time of Suki in a trench, wearing army attire and firing a gun as she shouted at her comrades, "Ah, hidden behind a genetic graft, but that's still you. Eva San Julienne. Last surviving member of the Freedom 15! Hmm, self-declared anarchist, is that right?"

Suki, no, Eva suddenly pulled out a gun and pointed it at the Editor, "Who controls Satellite 5?" she demanded, her voice now harsh and cold.

The Editor raised his hands slowly in the air, looking shocked for only a moment, before he burst out laughing and lowered them, " _There's_ the truth!"

"The Freedom Foundation has been monitoring Satellite 5's transmissions. We have absolute _proof_ that the facts are being manipulated. YOU are lying to the people."

"Oh, I love it. Say it again."

"This whole system is corrupt," she stepped forward, gun ready, "Who do you represent?"

"I'm merely a humble slave. I answer to the Editor-in-Chief."

"Well, who is he? Where is he?"

"He's overseeing everything. Literally, _everything_. If you don't mind, I'm going to have to refer this upwards," he clicked his fingers and pointed up.

The roaring starting once again.

Eva immediately pointed her gun at the ceiling, "What is that?" she asked, now scared.

"Your boss. This has always been your boss. Since the day you were born."

Eva fired ineffectually in the direction of the creature, but it bore down on her.

She screamed…

~8~

Angel shivered suddenly, making the Doctor look over at her, "Alright there?"

She nodded, "Just caught a chill."

"What, in this place?" Rose asked, fanning herself, it was _boiling_ on Floor 139.

"I suppose," Angel murmured, glancing at the lift doors as they followed Cathica away from them.

~8~

Adam entered the observation deck, looking out over the Earth for a few moments before turning his attention to the computer behind him. He placed his hand on the hand pad, "Give me access..." he said and the computer sprung to life. He snatched his hand away and paused, "I can learn _anything_ …" he muttered to himself, his eyes wide at the possibilities of what that could mean.

He looked around, making sure no one was watching, before turning back to the screen. He placed his hand on the groove once more, "Let's try...uh, computers. From the 21st Century to the present date, give me the history of the Microprocessor," the computer started to stream the information into Adam as he looked on amazed, "Oh my God…"

~8~

Cathica entered the workroom with the three travellers following her, "Look, they only give us twenty minutes maintenance, can't you give it a rest?"

"But you've never been to another floor?" the Doctor shook his head, "Not even one floor down?" he settled himself comfortably on the high-tech chair while Rose leaned back on it, Angel just standing beside him.

"I went to Floor 16 when I first arrived. That's medical, that's when I got my head done, and then I…I came straight here. Satellite 5, you work, eat, and sleep on the same floor. That's it, that's all," she paused, looking at them, "You're not management, are you?"

"At last!" the Doctor grinned, "She's clever!"

"Yeah, well, whatever it is, don't involve me. I don't know anything."

"Don't you even ask?" Angel eyed her.

"Well, why _would_ I?" she rolled her eyes.

"You're a journalist!" the Doctor cried, "Why's all the crew human?"

"What's that got to do with anything?"

"There's no aliens on board. Why?"

"I don't know. No real reason, they're not banned or anything."

The Doctor gave the empty room a glance, "Then where are they?"

"I suppose immigration's tightened up," she began, though they could all tell she was stumped, "It's had to. What, with all the threats."

"What threats?" Angel asked.

"I don't know..." she said, frustrated and lost, "All of them. Usual stuff. And the price of space warp doubled so that kept the visitors away..." she turned to walk around a bit, the trio watching her intently, "Oh, and the government on Traffic 5's collapsed, so that lot stopped coming, you see...just...lots of little reasons, that's all."

"Adding up to one great big fact and you didn't even notice," the Doctor stated.

"Doctor, I think if there was any kind of conspiracy, Satellite 5 would have seen it. We see everything."

"I can see better. This society's the wrong shape. Even the technology."

"It's _cutting edge_!"

"It's _backwards_! There's a great big door in your head! You should've chucked this out _years_ ago."

"So, what do you think is going on?" Rose frowned.

"It's not just this space station. It's the whole attitude. It's the way people think. The Great and Bountiful Human Empire's stunted. Something's holding it back."

"And how would _you_ know?" Cathica scoffed.

"Trust me," the Doctor turned to her, "Humanity's been set back about…"

"90 years," Angel cut in, before glancing up at Cathica, "When _did_ Satellite 5 start broadcasting?"

"91 years ago..." Cathica breathed.

The Doctor nodded as Cathica looked away, shaken.

~8~

Adam stood in front of the computer terminal on Rose's mobile, "Mum, dad, KEEP this message, ok? Whatever you do, DON'T erase it. _Save it_. You got that?" he placed his hand on the pad once more, speaking into the mobile as the information streamed before him, "The microprocessor became redundant in the year 2019, when it was replaced by a system called SMT, that's Single Molecule Transcription…"

Suddenly the information cut off and the words 'Floor 16' appeared on screen.

"No, no, no, no, no, _no_!" he glared at the screen, "What're you _doing_? Come back! Come…" he kicked the base of the computer, looking behind him to check if anyone heard him and then back at the computer, "Why are you doing that?" but the words remained, "What's Floor 16? What's down there?"

~8~

Adam stepped off the lift to Floor 16, looking around at a room lined with desks, people sitting behind them, talking to members of staff dressed in red. He walked past them all till he reached one on the end where a nurse was sitting, unoccupied.

"Sorry," he approached her, "Um, Floor 16, that's, um...what do you cover?"

"Medical non-emergency," she replied.

"Right, wrong floor, I'm having technical difficulties. My screen keeps freezing, blocking me out."

"No, that's medical...there must be something wrong with your chip."

"Yes. Yeah, of course, yeah," he laughed before pausing, "I haven't got one."

The nurse rolled her eyes, "No wonder you can't get a screen to work. What are you, a...student?"

"Yes, yeah, I'm um..." he thought quickly, sitting down before her, "I'm on a research project from..." he trailed off, "The University of...Mars?"

She rolled her eyes again, "The Martian Boondocks. _Typical_."

"Yep."

"Well, you still need chipping."

"So...does that mean like...brain surgery?"

"That's an old-fashioned phrase...but it's the same thing, yes."

"Oh...ok...never mind..." he leaned back, before pointing at her, "But if I get a chip, that means I could use _any_ computer."

"Absolutely. You'll...have to pay for it. They've stopped subsidizing."

"Oh!" Adam's eyes widened, "Right. Sorry. Wasting your time. Thanks," he got up and moved to leave but only made it a few paces before he stopped and put his hand in his pocket, "Hold on...can I use this?" he pulled out the credit stick.

"That'll do nicely," she smirked.

~8~

Adam sat on what looked like an upgraded dentist's chair in some sort of operating room when the nurse approached him, "It all comes down to two basic types," she explained, pushing him back on the chair and putting a strange metal band above his head, "Type One, the head chip. Inserted into the back of the skull, one hundred credits. There's the chip..." she placed the chip on her finger and showed it to him, "Tiny. Invisible. Type Two is the full info-spike."

"Oh, um...that's the..." he swallowed, pointing to his forehead and imitated the spike noise, "...thing."

"That's the one. It does cost ten thousand."

"Oh, well I um...I couldn't afford it, then," he breathed a sigh of relief, having second thoughts about it all.

"Not at all! Turns out, you've got unlimited credit," she held out the credit stick to show him.

"No, but...I couldn't have it done. I mean...that's gotta hurt, hasn't it?"

"Painless. Contractual guarantee."

He laughed nervously, "No, my mate's waiting upstairs, I can't have major surgery."

"It takes ten minutes. That sort of money buys a very fast pico-surgeon."

Adam tensed as she circled the chair in a somewhat predatory nature. He smiled, unsure, "No, but I...I couldn't, no, no. It's..."

The nurse leaned in closer to him, "Type One, you can interface with a simple computer. Type Two, you _are_ the computer. You can transmit any piece of information from the archive of Satellite 5, which is just about the entire history of the Human Race. Now...which one's it going to be?"

~8~

Cathica was anxious as she stood beside the Doctor, Rose, and Angel as the Doctor proceeded to scan the side of a door with the sonic, "We're SO gonna get in trouble," she remarked, coming to stand by Rose and Angel behind him, "You're not allowed to touch the mainframe, you're gonna get told off."

"Rose, tell her to button it," the Doctor called.

"You can't just vandalize the place, someone's gonna notice!" Cathica whispered urgently.

The Doctor just wrenched the door open.

~8~

"I don't understand!" the Editor shouted angrily as he watched the group of travellers and Cathica on the monitor, "We did a _full security scan_. That man and those women were there when we found Suki Macrae Cantrell. There were no indications about them. And yet here they are..." he knelt down by Eva, who was now sitting at a terminal, staring ahead blankly, her skin pale from the cold, hard at work, "Clearly acting outside the parameters," he looked back at the screen, "Fascinating," he leapt to his feet as the creature on the ceiling started growling again, "Yes sir. Absolutely. At once," he walked along the line of workers, "Check him. Double check him. Triple check him. Quadruple."

The creature rumbled.

~8~

"This is nothing to do with me, I'm going back to work," Cathica backed away as the Doctor just kept fiddling.

"Go on then!" he shouted, "See ya!"

She stopped, "I can't just leave you, can I?!"

"If you wanna be useful, get 'em to turn the heating down," Rose turned to her, "It's boiling. What's wrong with this place, can't they do something about it?"

"I don't know, we keep asking. Something to do with the turbine..."

"'Something to do with the turbine,'" the Doctor mocked.

"Well, I don't know!"

"Exactly! I give up on you, Cathica. Now, Rose, look at Rose," Rose smiled, "Rose is asking the right kind of questions."

"Oh, thank you," Rose winked.

"Why's it so hot?"

"One minute you're worried about the Empire and the next it's the central heating!" Cathica rolled her eyes.

"Well, never underestimate plumbing. Plumbing's very important."

And then he accidently snapped a bunch of wires off the wall.

Cathica looked away, just knowing they'd get caught for this.

~8~

"Security scan complete," the computer announced.

"Well, who are they?" the Editor asked, "Who is he?"

"He is no one."

He laughed, not understanding, "What does _that_ mean?"

"He is no one."

"What, you mean he has a fake ID?"

"He has no identification."

"But _everyone's_ registered. We have a census for the _entire_ Empire."

"He is no one."

"What, he doesn't exist? Not anywhere?"

"He is no one."

"What about the blonde?"

"She is no one."

"Well what about her sister then?!"

"She is no one."

" _All_ of them?" he shouted, incredulous, "Well! We all know what happens to non-entities," he grinned, devious, "They get _promoted_ ," he turned to another decaying woman working away, "Bring them up," he patted her shoulder, grinning.

~8~

The Doctor grinned as he managed to hack into the mainframe, turning the screen to Cathica, "Here we go, Satellite 5. Pipes and plumbing. Look at the layout."

He moved to stand behind her so she could see, but she just frowned, "This is ridiculous. You've got access to the computer's core. You can look at the archive, the news, the stock exchange...and you're looking at _pipes_?"

"But there's something wrong," Angel replied quietly.

Cathica glanced at her curiously before turning back to the screen, "I suppose..."

"Why, what is it?" Rose frowned, not seeing it, but then again she wasn't all that familiar with Satellite 5.

"The ventilation system. Cooling ducts, ice filters, all working flat out...channeling massive amounts of heat DOWN."

"All the way from the top," the Doctor agreed.

"Floor 500," Rose breathed.

"Something up there is generating tons and _tons_ of heat."

"Well, I don't know about you, but I feel like I'm missing out on a party," Rose grinned, "It's all going on upstairs. Fancy a trip?"

"You can't, you need a key," Cathica reminded them.

"Keys are just codes, and I've got the codes right here," he gestured to the screen, taping a few keys, "Here we go, override 215.9."

"How come it's giving _you_ the code?"

Angel looked up at the security camera, "Someone up there likes us."

~8~

The Editor laughed as he watched them on the screen, they would have no idea what was in store for them.

~8~

Adam ran his hand over his smooth, normal-looking, forehead as the nurse stood beside him, examining himself in a mirror.

"I _told_ you it was painless," she remarked, "No scaring, you see? Perfect success."

"How do I activate it?" he asked her.

"It's a personal choice. Some people whistle. I know one man who triggers it with 'Oh, Danny Boy.' But you're set on default for now. That's a click of the fingers."

"So you mean, I just..."

The nurse raised her fingers, ready to click, "Click."

~8~

The lift opened on Floor 139, Rose, the Doctor, and Angel stepping into it, Cathica stopping outside it.

"Come on, come with us!" Rose urged the woman.

"No way!" she took a step back.

"Bye!" the Doctor waved.

Angel glanced at him before waving as well.

"Well, don't mention my name! When you get in trouble, just don't involve me!"

"That's her gone," the Doctor commented as Cathica stormed off, "Adam's given up. Looks like it's just the three of us," the Doctor grinned at both of them on either side of him.

"Yeah," Rose smiled back.

"Good."

"I agree," Angel said.

They all grinned at each other as the Doctor slid a card into the controls and the doors shut. The lift started to climb rapidly as Angel shifted uncomfortably. The Doctor looked over at her, seeing it, and reached out, taking her hand.

~8~

Adam clicked his fingers, the door opening in his head, revealing his brain. He fingered the shutters round the hole with his mouth open for a few seconds before clicking his fingers again to close it, shaking, rapidly growing pale. He flopped back into his seat, "Oh, my God," he gasped, "I'm gonna be sick," he wretched terribly and a vomit colored ice cube stuck out of his mouth. He took it between his fingers, looking at it in confusion.

"Special offer," the nurse explained, "We installed the vomit-o-matic at the same time. Nano-termites have been placed in the lining of your throat. In the event of sickness…" she held out a bowl to him, "They freeze the waste."

Adam just placed the ice cube into the bowl, peering down at it.

~8~

The lift opened to reveal Floor 500, covered in frost and snow as they stepped into it.

"The walls are _not_ made of gold," the Doctor muttered, before something drifted back to him. He looked over at Angel, who was staring up at the lightly falling snow with a frown. The walls were not gold, they were _ice_ …and if she was right about _that_ …then what about the _other_ words she had used to describe the Floor. He quickly turned back to Rose and Angel, "You should go back downstairs."

"Tough," Rose remarked, striding in.

The Doctor watched her go a moment before looking over at Angel. He reached out and took her hand, tugging her after Rose.

Angel frowned as they followed the blonde human, she just couldn't help but feel like Rose sometimes treated the trips with the Doctor far too easily, like it was no danger at all, like it was just a dream and a fun little trip rather than a serious matter that could end her life at any moment.

She shook her head, no, Rose wouldn't die. She'd make sure of that, she rather liked her. Rose was so kind to her, she'd helped her select the outfit she was wearing now. She hadn't thought the outfit she'd picked originaly was so bad though, a floral print button up shirt, orange pants, and a scarf of purple feathers with shoes that were about three inches thick on the bottom. Rose had taken one look at it and started laughing, which had made her laugh as well...though she still wasn't sure what was funny though. But she supposed it was just human humor. Rose had taken her by the hand on a wander through the wardrobe, till she claimed to have found the perfect outfit, and she had to admit, she did love the clothes she was wearing now. Much more comfortable, and very her. Rose had beamed when she'd stepped out, saying it was much better and she looked lovely, which made her smile.

Rose was kind like that.

They soon found themselves in a large control room, the Editor standing before them, watching the screens.

"I started without you," he told them, not looking up, "This is fascinating. Satellite 5 contains every piece of information within the Fourth Great and Bountiful Human Empire. Birth certificates, shopping habits, bank statements, but YOU three...you don't exist!" they looked right at him as he laughed, "Not a trace! No birth, no job, not the slightest kiss. How can you walk through the world and not leave a single footprint?"

Rose spotted Eva, sitting with a row of people before one of the terminals, and made her way over, "Suki!" she knelt next to her, but Eva made no move, "Suki! Hello? Can you hear me? Suki?" she glared back at the Editor, "What've you done to her?"

"I think she's dead," the Doctor replied grimly, eyeing the _unmoving_ line of people.

"She's working..."

"They've all got chips in their head, and the chips keep going. Like puppets."

"Oh!" the Editor cheered, "You're full of information! But it's only fair we get information back, because apparently, you're no one," he laughed as the Doctor nodded, "It's so rare not to know something. Who are you?"

"It doesn't matter, 'cos we're off," the Doctor glared at him, "Nice to meet you."

"Rose, hurry," Angel called to her.

They turned to go as three of the dead employees grabbed onto them, two holding the Doctor back, one holding Angel. Rose moved to help them only for Eva's corpse to grab her arm as well.

"Tell me who you are!" the Editor yelled persistently.

"Since that information's keeping us alive, I'm hardly gonna say, am I?" the Doctor replied.

The man just smirked, "Well, perhaps my Editor-in-Chief can convince you otherwise."

"And who's that?"

"It may interest you to know that this is NOT the Fourth Great and Bountiful Human Empire. In fact, it's not actually human at all. It's merely a place where humans happen to live."

Something above them growled, sounding angry.

"Yeah, sorry. It's a place where humans are _allowed_ to live by kind permission of my client," he clicked his fingers and jerked one up at the creatures in the ceiling.

They glanced up, their eyes widening at the blob of alien with a slobbering mouth full of sharp, snapping teeth bearing down on them.

"What is that?" Rose breathed, nervous, a bit frightened.

"You mean, that _thing's_ in charge of Satellite 5?" the Doctor stared up at it.

"That 'thing,' as you put it, is in charge of the Human Race," the Editor glared as the Doctor looked at him in shock, "For almost a hundred years, mankind has been shaped and guided, his knowledge and ambition strictly controlled, by its broadcast news. Edited by my superior, your master, and humanity's guiding light, the mighty Jagrafess of the Holy Hadrojassic, Maxarodenfoe," it roared loudly as the Editor smiled, "I call him Max."

The Doctor smiled grimly and nodded.

* * *

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Getting a little more of a sense of Angel's 'abilities' here. The Doctor's working it out, have you? We'll know for sure, a part of it, next chapter :)


	6. The Long Game: An Open Mind

Adam walked through Floor 139, swiftly turning and pretending to be any old body standing there checking his watch as Cathica came out of a work room, not seeming to notice him. She walked off towards the computer the Doctor had hacked into for the codes, glancing around as she entered the lift, put in the code, and took off up to Floor 500.

~8~

Angel winced as she struggled in the manacles the dead workers had forced her into, not very fond of being restrained in such a manner after being trapped by Van Statten. She looked to her right where the Doctor had been locked in between her and Rose.

"If we create a climate of fear..." the Editor was explaining, "Then it's easy to keep the borders closed. It's just a matter of emphasis. The right word in the right broadcast repeated often enough can destabilize an economy, invent an enemy, change a vote..."

"So, all the people on Earth are like…slaves?" Rose frowned.

"Well, now. There's an interesting point. Is a slave a slave if he doesn't _know_ he's enslaved?"

"Yes," the Doctor stated simply.

"Oh," he pouted, "I was hoping for a philosophical debate. Is that all I'm going to get? 'Yes?'"

"Yes," Angel answered this time.

The Editor chuckled, "You're no fun."

"Let me out of these manacles, you'll find out how much fun I am," the Doctor glowered.

"Oh, he's tough, isn't he? But, come on. Isn't it a great system? You've got to admire it, just a little bit."

"You can't hide something on this scale," Rose argued, "Somebody _must've_ noticed."

"From time to time, someone, yes. But the computer system allows me to see inside their brain. I can see the smallest doubt," the Editor made a fist, "And crush it."

~8~

Cathica stepped off the lift of Floor 500, looking around at the snow covered area, before striding across it.

~8~

Adam peered cautiously into the room Cathica and the other members of the news crew had used before, spotting the large chair on the platform and entered, shutting the door behind him.

~8~

"And then they just carry on, living their life," the Editor sighed, "Strutting about downstairs and all over the surface of the Earth like they're SO individual…"

The Doctor glanced to his left to check on Angel, knowing it couldn't be easy to be so hindered. He'd experienced Van Statten's 'scanning' himself, been chained up, and she had been left with the man for years on end. But he frowned, she was staring at something just past the Editor. He followed her gaze to see she had spotted Cathica in the back entranceway to the room, keeping back so as not to reveal herself.

"When of course, they're not," the Editor went on, "They're just _cattle_. In that respect, the Jagrafess hasn't changed a thing."

"What about you?" Rose glared at him, "You're not a Jagra...uh...a..."

"Jagrafess," Angel whispered, pulling her gaze away from Cathica.

"Jagrafess. You're not a Jagrafess. You're human."

"Yeah, well simply being human doesn't pay very well," he sighed.

"But you couldn't have done this all on your own."

"No! I represent a consortium of banks. Money prefers a long-term investment. Also, the Jagrafess needed a little hand to um...install himself."

"No wonder, a creature that size," the Doctor glanced up. Cathica, still hiding, followed his gaze to see the Jagrafess on the ceiling, "What's his life span?"

"3,000 years," Angel answered before the man could, looking up as well.

"That's one hell of a metabolism generating all that heat. _That's_ why Satellite 5's so hot. You pump it out of the creature, channel it downstairs, Jagrafess stays cool, stays alive. Satellite 5's one great big life support system."

~8~

Adam sat in the chair, snapping his fingers to open his head. He pulled out Rose's mobile and called his home once more, waiting till the machine picked up, "Me again. _Don't_ wipe this message. It's just gonna sound like white noise, but save it because I can translate it. Ok? Three, two, one...and spike!"

The compressed information started to flow into his brain, being recorded over the phone.

~8~

"But THAT'S why you're so dangerous," the Editor grinned, "Knowledge is power, but you remain unknown," he snapped his fingers and the restraints began to send electricity surging through them, "Who are you?"

~8~

Adam started to shake, the power overloading him.

~8~

The Doctor grimaced in pain till the electricity stopped, "Leave them alone. I'm the Doctor, she's Angel, and she's Rose Tyler, we're nothing, we're just wandering."

"Tell me who you are!"

"I just said!"

"Yeah, but who do you work for? Who sent you? Who knows about us? Who exactly…" he stopped.

~8~

Adam shuddered, tensing, feeling information being pulled out of him instead.

~8~

The Doctor looked at the Editor questioningly as the man grinned, "Time Lords."

The Doctor blinked, "What?"

"Oh, yes!" the Editor laughed, "The last two Time Lords in the travelling machine. Oh, with their little human girl from long ago..." he reached out to Rose's face only for the girl to turn her head away from him roughly.

"You don't know what you're talking about," the Doctor glared.

"Time travel."

~8~

Adam started screaming, the information being ripped out of him.

~8~

"Someone's been telling you lies," the Doctor shook his head.

"Young master Adam Mitchell?" the Editor asked, eyebrows raised. He clicked his fingers and a large security monitor turned on, showing them Adam, twisting in agony, shouting as he sat on the chair of Cathica's work room, a stream of compressed information striking his brain, now with a door like Cathica's in his head.

"Oh, my God, his head!" Rose's eyes widened.

"What the hell's he done?" the Doctor shouted, "What the hell's he gone and done?"

"They're reading his mind," Angel shook her head sadly, "He's telling them _everything_."

"And through him, I know everything about _you_ ," the Editor smirked, "He made the door, and we can keep it open, extracting _every last detail_ ," the Doctor looked sharply at Angel, hearing her words echoed back in the Editor, "Every piece of information in his head is now mine. And you have infinite knowledge, Doctor. The Human Empire is tiny compared to what you've seen in your T-A-R-D-I-S, TARDIS."

He looked back up at the Editor, "You'll never get your hands on it. I'll die first."

"We _both_ will," Angel agreed, glaring now.

 _No one_ was going to lay a _finger_ on the last TARDIS if she had a say in it. It was like the last connection to her family, to her past.

"Die all you like," the Editor shrugged, "I don't need you. I've got the key," he turned back at the monitor where the key to the TARDIS was slowly lifting out of Adam's pocket and dangling before him, Adam in no position to try and snatch it back.

"You gave him the key?" Angel asked Rose.

"You and your boyfriends!" the Doctor rounded on her as well.

"Today, WE are the headlines," the Editor cut in, "We can rewrite history. We could prevent mankind from _ever_ developing."

"And no one's gonna stop you," the Doctor's eyes narrowed at the Editor, before his gaze turned to Cathica over the man's shoulder, "Because you've bred a Human Race that doesn't bother to ask questions. Stupid little slaves, believing every lie. They'll just trot right into the slaughter house if they're told it's made of _gold_ ," he scoffed, "More like Fool's Gold."

Angel blinked, catching that, and looked over at him. He cast her a meaningful glance, promising a discussion later, when they had survived this.

They glanced back over to see Cathica was gone.

~8~

Cathica entered a work room on Floor 500, tossing the rotten corpse Eva had discovered off the chair and sitting down on the seat herself, "Disengage safety," she commanded.

The walls lit up around her.

~8~

An alarm began to sound in the control room.

"What's happening?" the Editor rushed over to the workers at their terminals, staring at the monitors.

~8~

"Maximum access," Cathica continued, "Override Floor 139."

~8~

Adam gasped as he was released, the information ceasing to stream into and out of him.

~8~

Cathica took a breath, preparing herself, "And...spike!"

The information shot out and into her.

~8~

"Someone's disengaged the safety," the Editor spun around. He snapped his fingers and the large monitor switched to Cathica, "Who's that?!"

"It's Cathica!" Rose called.

"And she's _thinking_ ," Angel beamed.

"She's using what she knows!" the Doctor laughed.

"Terminate her access!" the Editor turned to Eva.

"Everything I told her about Satellite 5. The pipes, the filters, she's _reversing_ it! Look at that..." he turned to look at the icicles all around the room starting to melt, "It's getting hot."

"I said _terminate_!" the Editor shouted, quickly placing his own hands over Eva's, "Burn her mind."

"Oh no you don't," Cathica said on the monitor, "You should've promoted me YEARS back!"

All the screens suddenly exploded, sending showers of sparks everywhere, the dead workers falling lifeless onto their terminals. Satellite 5 shook, alarms going off, as Rose squirmed as her manacles opened slightly, managing to slide out of them, Angel partially managing the same as her left arm released, but not her right.

The Editor tried to get the corpses upright to work, not noticing the captives freeing themselves behind him.

"She's venting the heat up here," the Doctor shouted, "The Jagrafess needs to stay cool and now it's sitting on top of a volcano!"

The Jagrafess let out a bellowing roar as the Doctor chuckled darkly up at it.

"Yes!" the Editor shouted at the roar, "Uh...I'm trying sir, but, I don't know how she did it, it's _impossible_. A member of staff with an idea…"

The Jagrafess just grew angrier as the Editor pushed Eva's body aside, trying to operate the computer himself.

Rose turned to the Doctor, fumbling to get his sonic out of his pocket as the Jagrafess snapped at them menacingly, "What do I do?" she yelled.

"Flick the switch!" the Doctor ordered.

Rose did so and the sonic buzzed. A small explosion went off nearby, causing Rose to jump. She turned back to the manacles, finally getting the Doctor out. He grabbed the sonic and turned to undo Angel's remaining one before spinning to the Editor, "Oi, mate, wanna bank on a certainty? Massive heat in a massive body. Massive bang!"

Lumps of flesh started falling off the Jagrafess as it swelled.

"See you in the headlines!" he called as they dashed away, out the back entrance, the Jagrafess starting to throb horribly, glowing red.

"Um, actually, sir, if it's all the same to you, I think I'll resign," the Editor called up to it, "Bye, then!" he made to leave but Eva grabbed his ankle, tripping him over and preventing him from leaving as she held on. He struggled, trying desperately to pull his foot away, "Let go of me!"

~8~

The trio ran as fast as they could down the corridor, just barely managing to miss the icy chunks starting to fall off the walls and ceiling.

~8~

The Jagrafess roared in pain.

"Let go of me!" the Editor tried to kick Eva away, desperate to escape, "Let go of me!"

~8~

They burst into the work room where Cathica was lying, the information still streaming into her.

~8~

The Jagrafess swelled horribly, exploding moments later as the Editor screamed in terror.

~8~

The Doctor clicked his fingers, closing the door in Cathica's head. Her eyes fluttered open as she looked up at the Doctor, who smiled down at her.

~8~

Angel stood, looking around at everyone in Floor 139's canteen cleaning up and recovering from the commotion the destruction of the Jagrafess had caused. The Doctor and Cathica were seated at a table a few feet away, talking, as Rose leaned on a counter behind them.

"We're just gonna go," the Doctor said, "I hate tidying up. Too many questions. You'll manage."

"You'll have to stay and explain it, no one's gonna believe me," Cathica argued.

"Oh, they might start believing a lot of things now. The Human Race should accelerate. All back to normal."

Cathica glanced over at Adam, who was loitering by the TARDIS, "What about your friend?"

"He's not my friend," he stated grimly, a menacing hint in his voice. He stood stiffly and stalked over to Adam, Rose and Angel rushing after him.

"Now, don't…" Rose began but the Doctor ignored her and strode right up to the boy.

"I'm alright now," Adam said quickly, trying to play the whole thing off, "Much better. I've got the key," he showed the Doctor, "Well, it's...I know..." he gave a nervous chuckle, "It all worked out for the best, didn't it?" the Doctor just snatched the key off him and grabbed him, opening the TARDIS door, "You know, it's not actually _my_ fault, because YOU were in charge…" and pushed the boy inside, ignoring him completely.

~8~

The Doctor steered Adam out of the TARDIS that had appeared in a quaint sitting room, Rose and Angel following them out, shutting the door behind them. The Doctor watched Angel carefully as her attention was draw right away to a telephone sitting on a small table.

"It's my house!" Adam breathed relieved, "I'm home! Oh, my God, I'm home!" he looked at the Doctor, who just turned his attention back to him, glaring, "Blimey. I thought you were going to chuck me out of an airlock."

"Of course we wouldn't chuck you out an airlock," Angel said, turning her gaze back at them.

Adam started smiling until...

"The TARDIS doesn't have an airlock," she finished, making him wince and glance at the Doctor.

"Is there something else you want to tell me?" the Doctor crossed his arms.

"No," he shook his head, though they could all detect a guilty quality in his voice, "Um...what do you mean?"

The Doctor made his way to the telephone, scooping it into his hand and holding it up, "The archive of Satellite 5. One _second_ of that message could've changed the world," Adam looked caught out as the Doctor put the phone down and flashed the sonic against it, blowing it up, "That's it, then. See ya," he turned and strode past him towards the TARDIS.

"How do you mean, 'see ya?!'"

"As in 'goodbye.'"

"But...what about me? You can't just go, I've got my head, I've got a chip Type Two, my head _opens_."

"What, like this?" the Doctor clicked his fingers, opening Adam's head.

"Don't," Adam said angrily, snapping his fingers, closing it.

"Don't do what?" he asked innocently, snapping his fingers again.

"Stop it!" Adam shouted, closing it.

"Alright now, Doctor, that's enough," Rose chastised lightly, "Stop it."

"Thank you," Adam smiled at Rose, who just clicked her fingers, "Oi!"

Rose sniggered, "Sorry, I couldn't resist."

Adam closed it.

Rose and the Doctor looked at Angel, who seemed confused as to why they were staring at her, before, "Oh!" she blushed a bit, realizing it was her turn, and snapped her fingers.

"Enough!" Adam shouted, closing it once more.

"The whole of history could've changed because of you," the Doctor became serious again.

"I just wanted to help."

"You were helping yourself."

"And, I'm sorry. I've said I'm sorry, and I am, I really am, but you can't just leave me like this."

"Yes I can. 'Cos if you show your head to anyone, they'll dissect you in _seconds_. You'll have to live a very quiet life. Keep out of trouble. Be average. Unseen. Good luck," he turned and moved to head back into the TARDIS.

"But I wanna come with you!"

"I only take the best for my companions," the Doctor turned to him, "I've got Rose."

There was a sound from the front of the house, the door opening.

"Oh my God," Adam's eyes widened.

"Who's that?" a woman's voice called, "Jeff? Is that you?"

"It's me, mum, don't come in, wait there a minute," Adam called back.

"Oh, my Lord! You never told me you were coming home!" Rose watched Adam's embarrassed face teasingly as Angel stepped into the TARDIS after the Doctor, "Hold on, I'll just take my coat off. You should've told me you were coming home. I would've got your favorite tea in."

"Rose...take me with you," he pleaded.

Rose just stared at him, as though she'd never seen him before, and turned to board the TARDIS without a backwards glance. The engines started moments later.

"Hey, I'll tell…what's that noise?" his mum called, "Have you left the back door open? Blimey _,_ there's a draft," she flung open the door to the room just as the TARDIS disappeared, "What a surprise! Ah, let me look at you. Ah, six months," Adam nodded, "It's like I saw you yesterday. Isn't it funny? The time goes by like that," she clicked her fingers…

Her jaw dropped open moments later.

~8~

"How's she looking?" the Doctor asked as Angel laid on her back, half her body stuck under the console as she worked on fixing something underneath, the Doctor crouching beside her.

"I've actually seen worse," came her muffled reply, "But it's nothing I can't fix."

"You fix TARDISes often back home?"

"Often enough," she replied, laughing, "At least four times a day I'd find something that needed fixing on one of them."

He nodded, falling silent as he looked around. Rose had gone off to bed for the night as he had asked Angel to check one of the controls for him. Though there was another reason he'd asked, he knew Rose would dash off when talk turned to mechanics, leaving the two of them alone.

"Angel…" he began slowly, "There's something I need to ask you."

"Go on."

"I told Adam to keep an open mind," he began, noticing how she had suddenly grown still and tense as though knowing what was coming next, "And you warned him not to keep it too open otherwise he may not be able to close it…"

"…it was just a joke."

"But it wasn't _just_ that. You suspected the walls on Floor 500 weren't just Fool's Gold or ice but dead, which was all true. Not to mention that Cathica's curiosity would get the better of her and she'd save us. And right when we got there, you said it felt slow."

She was silent.

"I just wanted to know…"

"I don't want to say," she cut in quietly.

"Why not?" he asked gently.

Angel slowly pulled herself out from under the panel to look up at him, "…you'll think I'm barmy."

"Why would I think that?" he frowned, his brow furrowing.

She shrugged, pushing herself up to sit against the console, "Everyone else did."

He smiled, scooting to sit beside her, "Do I look like everyone else?"

She smiled softly at that before sighing, "Sometimes…I say things, without thinking, or I get these…feelings…about things or people and, more often than not, they seem to be right."

"What sort of feelings?"

"I dunno," she shook her head, "Like...if someone's lying. Or sometimes I'll get a really bad feeling and something awful will happen," she swallowed hard at that.

She'd had a terrible feeling that day of the War, when everything changed. She'd begged her sister to stay back when another platoon had come for volunteers for an attack, she'd just _known_ something horrible was about to happen. And then her sister had been killed before her and she'd ended up trapped with a Dalek for 50 years as humans poked and prodded and scanned her.

She shook her head from those thoughts, a soft smile coming to her face as she thought more on the recent feelings she'd had, "Or like you."

"Me?" he frowned.

She nodded, "I knew, when I saw you, that...you'd done something."

He nodded, he'd told her about the end of the War, what had happened, what he'd done. It wouldn't have been fair for her to travel with him and not know. Now that he thought about it, she had taken it remarkably well for finding out that the man who had rescued her was the murderer of their entire species. It was...almost like she'd already known.

"It was weird though," she continued, frowning as she tried to describe it, "Like...it was something terrible but...necessary," she nodded, yes that was it, "I could tell that it _killed_ you to do it, whatever it was, that you _hated_ having to do it but that...there really was _no_ other way out. That you were sad, and lonely, and... _so_ sorry."

"I am," he said quietly, his voice starting to choke with emotion.

She just gave him a small smile, "I know."

Her sister was the last of her family. Her mother had died when she was young, her father had died much the same, in an attack by the enemy. The TARDISes they'd been growing had had to be adapted for the War. The Daleks found out and attacked their stock, killing all those beautiful TARDISes and her father as well. She'd only had her sister and, when she'd died, well...it wasn't like the Doctor had killed her family, they had already died. She did miss her people, her planet, the TARDISes, but...something inside her told her it was going to happen anyway, whether at the Doctor's hands or not, their race _would_ have fallen regardless.

It was only a matter of time.

In that sense, she couldn't hate him for what he'd done. In ending the War, he'd protected the rest of the Universe from its spread or...she didn't know. Perhaps something so much worse?

"I don't know why I get them," she added, "I just…do."

He nodded slowly, thinking it over, "You're precognitive?"

"I don't know. I don't _think_ I am."

"Were you ever tested on Gallifrey?" he asked. On Gallifrey, the precogs, those with the gift to see the future, the Visionaries, were very, _very_ rare individuals and very valuable assets, often having a place on the High Council.

"No," she shook her head, "It's not like I can actually see the future," she explained, thinking of what the Visionaries were famous for, actually being able to see beyond what a typical Time Lord could, "Just...feelings, sensations," she sighed, "Everyone at the Academy already thought I was odd enough, so I never said anything. I never talked about the feelings I got. The only one I _ever_ told was my mum, but she…" she trailed off.

It stung _so much worse_ to think of her mother's death. In war, death is a very real possibility for everyone who participated, but her mother's...that had come out of nowhere, so sudden that she hadn't felt a thing before it.

He nodded in understanding before reaching out and taking her hand, squeezing it in comfort and reassurance, "You get any more feelings, tell me, please?"

She looked up at him a moment, "You...don't think I'm...odd?"

He just grinned, "I think you're fantastic."

She laughed and nodded, "I will."

"Good," he nodded as well, just smiling at her.

And, for once, she actually felt accepted.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Did you notice how he only called Rose a companion to Adam? There's a reason for that which we'll see at the end of the next episode. And now we see just the tip of the iceberg in terms of what makes Angel special. She gets little feelings about what's coming, like a special little boy in 1913 eh? Hmmm...there'll be more discussion on the 'source' of her feelings in the Cybermen/Parallel London episodes of Series 2 :) Vortex or TARDIS...or possibly a natural gift? All are very valid theories, and all will be addressed at some point, mostly in Series 2. 
> 
> A little more on the origin of THIS ability of Angel's. When I was writing The Fires of Pompeii (for Evy), a line stuck out at me (which was odd because it didn't when I wrote it for the Professor, but oh well). It was when the Doctor says..."Because that's how we see the Universe. Every waking second, we can see what is, what was, what could be, what must not..." And I started to think, they can see 'what could be' and what if that literally meant the future? But I KNOW the Doctor can't see the future because then he wouldn't end up in half the situations he gets himself into (oh Doctor). But then! When I was writing out Evy's The End of Time chapters, I was going to have the council scene in there, I had it written out before deciding against it. But I remembered the Visionary, and then I started to think of Tim from Human Nature, how he couldn't exactly see the future (without the watch) but 'sense' it coming, and it was like...BAM! So I thought...hmmm...it might be interesting to have someone who was like a little mix of that. Hence, Angel. BUT! There are definitely twists, questions unanswered. Is it a natural ability of Angel's? Is it something the High Council did to her as with the Master for some reason? Or is it the result of a lifetime spent around the TARDISes? (As Idris proved she could 'see' the future at times.) Or is it something to do with the Vortex? Hmm...I guess we'll find out :)
> 
> But there'll definitely be more to it than JUST that, our Angel's got quite a few abilities still to pop up (as I said, this is just the tip of the iceberg) which we'll get a glimpse of especially in The Satan Pit :) As for her abilities, it'll definitely be a very slow progression. I really want it to be believable so nothing will happen too suddenly and, if it does, you can bet there'll be consequences from it. And that is all I'm going to say about that :)


	7. Father's Day: Dead Man Walking

"Peter Alan Tyler," Rose explained to the Doctor and Angel as she stood in the TARDIS, "My dad. The most wonderful man in the world. Born 15th of September, 1954."

~8~

_A little six-year-old Rose poked her head around her mother's bedroom door to see her sitting on the bed with a photo album in her lap, "Come here Rose," Jackie called softly, spotting her, "Come here..." she patted the bed beside her, the young girl clambering up to sit next to her as her mother pointed to a photo of her husband, "Who's that? It's your daddy. You weren't old enough to remember when he died. 1987. 7th of November. Do you remember what I told you? The day that Stuart Hoskins and Sarah Clark got married?" she turned the page to see herself and Peter together, "He was always having adventures. Oh, he would have loved to have seen you now."_

~8~

Rose leaned back against the console as the Doctor watched her from his spot, sitting in the captain's chair across from her, Angel seeming to be soldering something on the other side of the console, repairing it.

"That's what mum always says," Rose continued, "So, I was thinking...could we? Could we go and see my dad when he was still alive?"

"Where's this come from, all of a sudden?" the Doctor frowned.

"Alright then, if we can't, if it goes against the laws of time or something," she mumbled, turning away, "Then never mind, we'll just leave it."

"No, I can do anything. I'm just more worried about you."

"I wanna see him."

"Your wish is my command. But be careful what you wish for."

He stood up and joined Angel at the console, Rose moving to sit in the chair. Angel put down the soldering tool as the Doctor started putting in coordinates. He leaned over, "Any feelings about this?" he asked her quietly.

She sighed, glancing at Rose, "I…I'm not sure if Rose will be able to handle this."

There was just something in her gut telling her that something would go very, _very_ wrong.

~8~

The trio, sitting behind a small gathering of people, watched as Jackie and Pete Tyler got married in the local Registry Office.

"I, Peter Alan Tyler, take you, Jacqueline Angela Suzette Prentiss..." the official recited.

"I, Peter Alan Tyler, take you, Jacqueline Suzanne...Suzette...Anita..." Pete mucked it up, his nerves evident.

Jackie narrowed her eyes at him before sighing, "Oh, just carry on. It's good enough for Lady Di."

The Doctor grinned down at Rose, who was watching the proceedings curiously, "I thought he'd be taller," she commented.

Angel squinted at the man in question, "He looks average height to me."

The Doctor smiled, shaking his head fondly at her.

"...to be my lawful wedded wife, to love and behold 'til death us do part," the official continued.

~8~

" _He died so close to home," Jackie sighed quietly, sadly, "I wasn't there. Nobody was. It was a hit and run driver. Never found out who. He was dead when the ambulance got there," little Rose looked up at her solemnly, "I only wish there'd been SOMEONE_ _there for him."_

~8~

"I wanna be that someone," Rose explained sadly as the Doctor, her, and Angel stood around the console, "So he doesn't die alone."

"November the 7th?" the Doctor repeated, making sure.

"1987."

The Doctor glanced at Angel as she frowned before both of them got to work, putting in the coordinates, Rose watching them intently, fidgeting. The engines cooled down a moment later and Rose quickly headed for the door.

"You ready for this?" the Doctor asked Angel as they watched Rose step outside.

Angel sighed, "I don't think anyone will be ready for what's coming."

He nodded solemnly, knowing she probably didn't have an idea of what was coming exactly, but he could tell from her expression it would be bad. They headed outside to see Rose looking around. It was a calm, average day, the sun was even shinning.

"That's so weird," Rose remarked, "The day my father died...I thought it'd be all sort of grim and stormy, it's just an ordinary day."

"The past is another country," the Doctor replied, "1987's just the Isle of Wight."

"Are you absolutely _sure_ about this Rose?" Angel asked Rose, looking at her intently, putting her hand on Rose's shoulder, "It won't be easy to see."

She knew that all to well, to see someone you love die before your eyes. She wouldn't wish that on anyone.

Rose took a breath, "Yeah."

~8~

They walked to stand at the curb of the Powell Estate, when Angel glanced back briefly, almost _swearing_ they were being followed, before shaking her head and turning back. They came to stand at the edge of the pavement, waiting, Rose standing in the middle of them.

"This is it," Rose murmured, "Jordan Road. He was late. He'd been to get a wedding present, a vase. Mum always said, that _stupid_ vase," she swallowed hard, trying to hold back her tears, "He got out of his car..." a car came around the corner and pulled over, "...and crossed the road," the car stopped, "Oh, God. This is it."

They watched as Pete Tyler stepped out of the car, not noticing a thing. He leaned back in to pluck the vase Rose had mentioned from the seat. The Doctor and Angel reached out, both taking Rose's hands in their own, offering her their strength and comfort. Pete got back out of the car, not noticing the car speeding around the corner, heading straight for him. He turned, his eye widening in shock. The driver threw a hand over his eyes.

Rose quickly hid her head behind the Doctor's shoulder as Angel put her other hand on Rose's shoulder, squeezing it, half-hugging her, as the vase shattered. Rose lifted her head to look at her father, lying on the road, twitching.

"Go to him," the Doctor told her, "Quick."

But she couldn't move.

~8~

They stood a short while later, leaning against the wall in an alley nearby, Rose had tears in her eyes. Sirens from the ambulance began to ring out, drawing nearer.

"It's too late now," Rose commented, "By the time the ambulance got there, he was dead," her voice faltered, struggling with her tears. The Doctor looked down in silence when Rose turned to him, "He _can't_ die on his own," the Doctor looked at her sharply, "Can I try again?"

"Rose…" Angel said softly, voicing the concern the Doctor could not, "We _really_ shouldn't…"

"Please," she turned to look at Angel, the tears in her eyes spilling over.

Angel looked at the Doctor, shaking her head ever so slightly, but the Doctor could only sigh.

~8~

They stood around the corner of the street Pete would die on, out of sight, watching as their past selves walked to the curb, ducking back quickly as Past Angel glanced over her shoulder, as though sensing them but unsure.

A moment later, as the Doctor and Rose peeked out again to see that they were all standing at the curb, Angel moved to do the same, when something caught her eye. Graffitied on a poster for a rave on the wall just beside them were the words, 'Bad Wolf.' She frowned, this was the third time she'd encountered those words since meeting the Doctor.

"Right," the Doctor said, cutting off her thoughts, "That's the first us. It's a very bad idea, two sets of us being here at the same time. Just be careful they don't see us. Wait 'til she runs off and they follow, then go to your dad."

They watched as the car pulled up once again.

"Oh, God," they heard Past Rose breathe, "This is it."

"I can't do this," Rose shuddered, watching her father lean in to pick up the vase.

"You don't have to do anything you don't want to," the Doctor reminded her, "But this is the _last_ time we can be here."

Rose stared at her father getting back out of the car, breathing heavily, before darting off.

"Rose no!" Angel shouted.

But it was too late.

Rose ran past their past selves and tackled her father out of the way of the car, both of them tumbling to the road.

"Oh no," Angel breathed, watching with wide eyes as their past selves disappeared, the Doctor looking on in mounting horror.

Rose just stared at her father as he got to his feet, not noticing them at all, "I did it! I saved your life!"

"Blimey, did you see the speed of it?" Pete commented, gasping just a bit, "Did you get his number?"

"I really did it," she continued to stare, "Oh, my God, look at you! You're alive! That car was gonna _kill_ ya!"

"Well, give me some credit, I did see it coming. I wasn't gonna walk under it, was I?"

"I'm Rose," she said, staring at him as though waiting for him to make the connection.

"That's a coincidence," he smiled, "That's my daughter's name."

"That's a great name," she smiled brilliantly in return, "Good choice, well done."

There was a few seconds of silence as Rose just smiled at him, unable to take her eyes off him. He hesitated, unsure of what to say next, "Right, I'd better shift. I've got a wedding to go to."

"Is that Sarah Clark's wedding?"

"Yeah, are you going?"

"...yeah."

"You, your sister, and her boyfriend need a lift?" he asked, gesturing over to the Doctor, who was standing with his hand in Angel's, watching them darkly by the corner, Angel glancing around, concerned.

"Doctor…" Angel said quietly as Rose and Pete waved them over, he looked at her, "They're coming…"

"Who?" he asked, glancing around as well.

"I…I don't know," she shook her head.

~8~

High above the streets of London, a screeching sounded as the world below was viewed in a red haze.

~8~

Pete pushed open the door to the flat, letting Rose, Angel, and the Doctor in as well, setting the vase next to the door, "There we go," he welcomed them, "Sorry about the mess. If you want a cup of tea, the kitchen's just down there, milk's in the fridge...well, it would be, wouldn't it? Where else would you put the milk? Mind you, there's always the windowsill outside. I always thought if someone invented a windowsill with special compartments, you know, one for milk, one for yogurt...make a lot of money out of that," Rose beamed at that, so thrilled, still unable to tear her eyes away from him while the Doctor nodded behind her, Angel a bit too concerned with the feeling growing in the pit of her stomach to really be paying attention, "Sell it to students and things..." he trailed off in thought, "I should write that down. Anyway, never mind that, excuse me..." he gave them a nod and headed into another room, shutting the door behind him.

"All the stuff mum kept," Rose sighed, looking around at the sitting room full of odds and ends, "His stuff. She kept it all packed away in boxes in the cupboard, she used to show me when she'd had a bit to drink."

Angel followed her into the room, but headed more to look out the window, her eyes on the sky, than really looking at what Rose was pointing to. The Doctor just moved to lean against the doorframe, saying nothing.

"Here it is," Rose continued, "On display. Where it SHOULD be," the Doctor remained quiet, just watching her with his arms folded, angry, but Rose seemed not to notice as she picked up a trophy and showed it to him, "Third prize at the bowling...first two got to go to Didcot," she looked at it a few more seconds before replacing it when her eyes were drawn to quite a few containers of liquid to the side. She bent down to look at them, "Health drinks. Tonics, mum used to call them. He made his money selling this Vitex stuff. He had all sorts of jobs. He's so clever," she looked over and saw some plans on the table, "Solar power. Mum said he was gonna do this. Now he can," she finally turned to look at the Doctor, smiling, but he remained impassive, "Ok, look..." she glanced between them, at Angel, "I'll tell him you're not my sister," and back to the Doctor, "Or her boyfriend."

"When we met, I said 'travel with me in space,'" he recalled, suspicious, "You said no. Then I said ' _time_ machine…'"

"It wasn't some big plan," Rose defended, "I just saw it happening and I thought...I can _stop_ it."

"I did it again," he muttered, growing angrier, shaking his head at himself, "I picked another STUPID ape. I should've known. It's not about showing you the Universe, it _never_ is. It's about the Universe doing something for you."

"So it's ok when YOU go to other times, and YOU save people's lives, but not when it's _me_ saving my _dad_?"

" _I_ know what I'm doing! _You_ don't."

"Having two versions of us there made that moment a vulnerable point in time," Angel added quietly, not taking her eyes off the window, off the sky. Humans, aliens, whatever the case, however terrible she was at dealing with them or interacting, however poor her marks had been in the Academy, one thing she knew, one thing she understood better than anyone, _time_. Raising TARDISes, time travel was _all_ she could claim to be an expert in.

"But he's alive!" Rose spun to her.

"Our entire planet died," the Doctor countered, drawing her attention again, "My whole family. Angel's family. Do you think it never occurred to me, to either of us, to go back and save them?"

"But it's not like I've changed HISTORY. Not much, I mean...he's never gonna be a world leader, he's not gonna start World War Three or anything..."

"That's not it Rose," Angel sighed, turning around, "Right now, a man who shouldn't be alive, is."

"An ordinary man," the Doctor agreed, stepping towards her, "That's the most _important_ thing in creation."

"Everything, the whole world, is different now because of that."

"What, would you rather him dead?" Rose looked between them, growing furious.

"Of course not," Angel shook her head, taking a step towards Rose, wanting to give her a hug.

She'd seen that humans tended to do that for all manner of things, especially when they were upset, and she really was trying to get better at interacting with them, with others in general. She hadn't had many friends in the Academy, most thinking her odd so she kept to herself. She _did_ have a friend or two, a few Time Lords and Ladies who had grown up near her, who knew her well enough to have gotten used to her 'oddness' at a young enough age, but she really did try not to be so 'odd' around them either, keep things from slipping through. Not now though, now the Doctor actually WANTED her to do that, to let whatever feelings or slip of the tongues she got out. Still, she didn't like seeing Rose upset.

But Rose was far too angry and simply stepped back, making Angel pause.

"We're not SAYING that…" the Doctor began, exasperated.

"No, I get it!" Rose shouted, glaring at him, "For once, YOU'RE not the most important man in my life."

"Let's see how you get on without me then. Give me the key," he held out his hand as Rose stared at him, "The TARDIS key. If I'm _so_ insignificant, give me it back."

"Alright then, I will," she pulled it out and slapped it down into his hand, hard.

"Well, you've got what you wanted so that's goodbye then," he turned on her and walked down the hall, towards the door, with Rose pursuing him.

"You don't scare me," she called, though quite unconvincingly. She pushed past him and stood between him and the door, "You'll be back in a minute. I know how sad you are."

The Doctor just shook his head, "Was."

"What?"

"I WAS sad. I _was_ sad 'cos I was alone, but I'm not anymore, am I?" he stepped to the side, revealing Angel a few feet behind him, having followed them. He reached back and took her hand, "Neither of us are."

Rose blinked, almost having forgotten the Time Lady was there, "Yeah, but you won't leave me here, you'll hang around outside the TARDIS, waiting for me," the Doctor just glared at her and stormed past her, opening the door, "And I'll make you wait a long time!" she slammed the door shut as soon as they stepped past before leaning on the wall heavily.

Pete poked his head around the bedroom door, "So... _your_ boyfriend then?"

She didn't answer, just glared at the door.

~8~

Still fuming, the Doctor half-walked, half-stalked down the road with Angel at his side. A few moments later Angel shivered violently. He looked over at her, concerned.

"Whatever it is that's coming…" she began, crossing her arms as though she were cold, "They're close."

He pulled her closer, putting an arm around her shoulders in comfort as they hurried off.

~8~

Through a red haze a number of humans were being watched, oblivious. A woman hanging clothes on the line, a man tending his garden, another young man sitting against a wall having some lunch...all of them...screaming moments later as something fell from the sky and grabbed them.

~8~

Rose picked up peanuts that were strewn over the coffee table of the flat, putting them back on a plate when Pete entered, dressed in a suit.

"Excuse me, do you mind?" he laughed a bit, "What're you tidying up for?"

"Sorry..." she stopped, "Force of habit."

"Listen, don't worry about him. Couples have rows all the time."

"We're not a couple!" she shouted, plopping down on the sofa, "Why does EVERYONE think we're a couple? He's not my boyfriend!"

"Right," Pete winced, "Your sister's then."

Rose rolled her eyes, "She's not my sister and he's not her boyfriend either!" she took a breath, crossing her arms before she sighed, thinking about the wayward Time Lords, "I think he left me. They both left me."

"A pretty girl like you? If I was going out with you…"

"Stop!" she cried, on the verge of being scarred for life, "Right there!"

"I was just saying..."

"I _know_ what you're saying, and we're NOT going there. At no point are we going anywhere NEAR there. You aren't even aware that THERE exists," Pete frowned trying to keep up with what she was saying, "I don't even want to think about THERE _,_ and believe me, neither do you. THERE...for you…is like...pfft. It's like the Bermuda Triangle."

"Blimey, you know how to flatter a bloke."

Rose just jumped to her feet and grabbed her jacket, offering her arm to Pete, "Right, are we off?"

He nodded at her arm, "So, that wouldn't be a mixed signal at all."

"Absolutely not."

He sighed and took her arm, resigned, walking towards the door, "I'll take you back to the loony bin where you belong. Still, I'm sure I've met you somewhere before..." he shut the door behind them as they left.

~8~

The groom, Stuart Hoskins, stood at the altar, waiting for the bride, with his father beside him, glancing back nervously, "It's weird," he remarked.

"What?" his father asked.

"There's so many people missing. Uncle Steven, Auntie Lyn...all the Baxters. Where are they?" he looked at his watch, "You don't think something's gone wrong?"

"Maybe it's a Godsend. Gives you time to _think_. You don't _have_ to go through with it, not these days. Live in sin for a bit."

"Dad..." Stuart moaned. His father thought he was just 'doing right' by marry his pregnant girlfriend, the man just couldn't see that he actually LOVED her.

"In ten years time you'll turn round and say, 'if only I could turn the clock back,'" his father muttered, glancing at the stained glass window before turning back to Stuart, "Is it me or did it just get cold?"

~8~

The red haze lingered, watching a man in a black jacket and a woman in a blue duster reach a street corner.

~8~

The Doctor and Angel stepped around the corner, coming to where to TARDIS. He seemed a bit torn between being angry with Rose and concerned about what Angel had said earlier. Angel, however, just kept glancing up, as though seeing something out of the corner of her eye in the sky but it was gone everytime she turned. He stopped before the TARDIS, pulling out the key, when he suddenly looked up as well.

"Doctor…" Angel began, "Something's _wrong_."

He looked at her to see her staring at the TARDIS instead and quickly opened the doors, to reveal that the inside of the ship was gone, completely disappeared. It was just an ordinary police box. He jumped inside, pressing against the walls, as Angel leaned over to look around the doorframe.

"Oh no…" she gasped.

He looked at her, his eyes widening, "Rose!" he dashed out of the box, the two of them racing back down the road.

~8~

"I met this bloke at the Horse's, and he's cutting me in on copyright," Pete continued to speak of his inventions and business as he drove him and Rose to the wedding.

"But I thought you were a proper businessman and that..." Rose began.

"I wish!" he cut in with a laugh, "Ah, I do a bit of this, a bit of that, a straight bloke."

"Right...so I must've heard wrong. So really you're a bit of a...a Del Boy?"

"Oh, shoot me down in flames. You're not related to my wife by any chance, are you?"

Rose put her hand over her mouth, realizing something, "Oh, my God...she's gonna be at the wedding."

"What, Jackie?" he glanced at her, "Do you know her?"

Rose paused a moment, "Sort of…"

"What's she told you about me, then?"

Rose smiled in memory, "She said she'd picked the most fantastic man in the world."

"Must be a different Jackie then. She'd never say that," after a few seconds of silence the radio sprung to life, playing rap, "This stuff goes right over my head," he tapped it in irritation.

"That's not out yet," Rose muttered, confused, recognizing the song.

"It's a good job and all," he grimaced.

She quickly pulled out her mobile, "I'm just gonna check my messages."

"How d'ya mean, messages?" he looked over at the small device in her hands, "Is that a phone?"

"Yeah..." she nodded, holding it to her ear.

But the only message that played was, "Watson, come here, we need you. Watson, come here, we need you," over and over. She furrowed her brow in confusion before glancing at her father, who also looked puzzled as the very same message came over the radio, "Watson, come here, we need you."

Pete looked in the rearview mirror at the car behind them, one that looked strikingly familiar to him. As he rounded the corner the car vanished, the driver throwing his hand over his eyes as it did so.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh Angel, still not quite 'with it' with humans just yet, wait till she gets stuck in a church with Jackie lol.
> 
> This chapter sort of explained a little more about her interactions with her own people, she's always been a bit 'odd' around others but she did manage some friends along the way. There's one in particular that the Doctor knows as well, but we won't find out who it is till MUCH later in the saga :) And, keeping in mind how much she tried to hide her feelings from said friends, but is not with the Doctor, well...seems like he's the first one to really accept her completely for who she is. You can definitely bet she will not be happy with what paradoxes may come :)


	8. Father's Day: Sanctuary

As the wedding guests milled around outside the church, Stuart's father stepped out of it, talking on a massive mobile phone, "Half the guests haven't turned up. You're better off not being here, it's a disaster in the making," he glanced over as a few people walked into the church, "No, in this case, 'knocked her up' IS a phrase I'd use."

"Watson, come here, we need you," came the reply.

"Hello?" he frowned, "Who is this?" he looked at the phone.

"Watson, come here, we ne…"

He hung up quickly as a car with ribbons covering the bonnet pulled up outside the church. Stuart came out and turned to his dad, "Dad, get inside! We can't see the bride before the wedding, it's bad luck!"

"Bad luck when you MET her. I tell you, this day is _cursed_ ," Stuart turned to walk back inside, holding out a hand to his dad's face to block him out as he followed him in.

"Now, that's what I call a meringue!" a brunette woman gushed as Sarah Clark, the bride, stepped out of the car.

"Listen, do what Stan said and go round the block, 'cos there's people missing," a second blonde woman remarked.

"How do you mean 'missing?'" Sarah frowned, adjusting her veil.

"There's no Dave, no Sunita, no B..." the first woman replied.

"There's no one from the Lamb and Flag..." the second one added.

"Oh, my train's detached again. I KNEW I should've used Velcro..." Sarah muttered, looking back.

"I'm here, stop your belly-aching," a younger Jackie called, getting out of the car, "Take Rose a sec, will ya?" she handed one of the woman a carry-tot with an adorable 6-month-old Rose inside.

"Oh, isn't she pretty?" the first woman cooed.

"She's a little madam, that's what she is," Jackie replied, making her way to the gate with the first woman, "Oh, I need more hands. Where's her useless article of a dad got to?"

Just then Pete and Rose rounded the corner in his car…when suddenly the same car that had nearly killed him appeared out of nowhere.

"Dad!" Rose gasped, seeing it.

Pete swerved sharply left to avoid it, beeping his horn, nearly crashing into the wall around the churchyard. He turned around in his seat to look back as the other car sped off while Rose just looked straight ahead, shaken.

"It's that car!" he stated, "The same one as before!" he quickly got out and looked around, "It was right in front of us, where's it gone?" he blinked, turning to Rose as she got out as well, catching something, "You called me 'dad,' what did you say that for?"

"Oh, wonderful," a voice said. They turned to see Jackie standing there with the carry-tot, "Here he is, the accident waiting to happen," Rose turned to gape at her, "You'd be late for your own funeral and it nearly was!"

"No damage done," Pete sighed.

"And who's this?" Jackie looked disdainfully at Rose, who continued to stare, "What're YOU looking at with your mouth open?"

"Your hair…" she breathed.

"What?!"

"I've never seen it like…" she paused, noticing Jackie eyeing her, confused and insulted, "I mean...it's lovely, your hair's lovely," she spotted the baby and took a few steps towards it, eyes wide in shock, "And that baby you're holding..." Jackie quickly held the baby closer to her, protective, "That would be...your baby..."

"Another one of _yours_ , is she?" Jackie glared at Pete.

"She saved my life!" Pete defended.

"Oh, _that's_ a new one! What was it LAST time?"

"I didn't even _know_ her," Pete rolled his eyes, before explaining to Rose, "She was a cloakroom attendant. I was helping her look for my ticket. There were three duffel coats all the same, somehow the rack collapsed. We were under all this stuff."

"Were you playing around?!" Rose looked at him, scandalized.

"What's it got to do with YOU what he gets up to?" Jackie sneered at her.

"What DOES he get up to?"

"YOU'D know!"

"Oh, 'cos I'm _that_ stupid," Pete scoffed, "I play around and then bring her home to meet the missus. You silly cow..."

"But you ARE that stupid."

"Can we keep this stuff back home? Just for now?"

"What, with the rest of the rubbish?" Jackie shook her head, not noticing Rose growing more upset as they fought, "You bring home cut-priced detergents, tonic water, Betamax tape, and NONE of it works, I'm DROWNING in your _rubbish_ ," she turned to Rose, "What did he tell you? Did he say he's this big businessman, 'cos he's _not_. He's a _failure_. Born failure, that one. Rose needs a _proper_ father…"

"Jackie, I'm making a living, it keeps us fed, don't it?"

"Stop it!" Rose shouted, making them both shut up, "You're not like this…" she swallowed, not having expected _this_ at all, nothing her mother said could have prepared her for this constant fighting, "You LOVE each other."

"Oh, Pete," Jackie shook her head at him pityingly, "You never used to like them mental. Or I dunno, maybe you did."

"Jackie, wait, just listen…" he began.

"If you're not careful, there'll be a wedding and a divorce on the same day," Jackie turned and stormed off with the baby who had started crying.

"Right, wait here," Pete turned to Rose, "Give us a couple of minutes with the missus," he turned to walk away and then back to her, taking the vase out of her hand, exchanging it with his car keys, "Tell you what, straighten the car up. Stick her round the corner or something. Don't cause any more trouble..."

He walked off, leaving Rose standing by the car, tears in her eyes.

~8~

The red haze focused on a small playground, children running about everywhere.

~8~

In that very same playground around the corner, there was one little black boy sitting on a swing, watching as one by one the people started to disappear.

"Jeff!" the boy called, looking around until he was the last person remaining. Scared, he hopped off the swing and ran out of the gates.

~8~

Rose watched silently as her mother and father talked a few feet away from her.

"I'm not listening," Jackie said quietly, much calmer than before, but still very sad, "It's just the duffel coats all over again."

"Jackie, sometimes a duffel coat is _just_ a duffel coat," he told her earnestly, "Things will get better soon, I _promise_."

"I've had _enough_ of all your daft schemes. I never know where the next meal's coming from."

"I'll get it right, love. I promise, one day soon I'll get it right. Come on..."

Rose smiled softly, watching them reconcile, when suddenly that same little boy ran around the corner.

"Monsters!" the boy cried, "Coming to eat us!"

"What sort of monsters sweetheart?" the blonde women asked, "Is it aliens?"

They started laughing but the boy just ran into the church. Rose watched, taking the boy far more seriously than anyone else.

"Rose!" she heard a woman call.

She turned around to see Angel and the Doctor running towards her. She smiled in a rather pleased manner.

"Get in the church!" the Doctor shouted, his voice full of more warning and urgency than ever.

Her smile fell, especially when Angel looked to the left. Rose followed her gaze, only to see a giant black creature with two wings and a tail appear out of thin air. She screamed as it flew at her but the Doctor knocked her out of the way just in time, both falling to the ground. Angel ran over, quickly helping them up.

"Get in the church!" the Doctor repeated, ordering the crowd inside. Everyone ran to the door, stopping short when another creature appeared before them.

"Oh, my God!" the blonde women screamed, "What are they?"

The guests in the church moved to the doors to see what the commotion was.

"Inside!" Angel yelled to them, spotting them.

The creature turned on them, those having just peeked out now trying to _come_ out.

"Stay in there!" the Doctor commanded them.

Stuart tried to get away, get back in, but his father didn't listen and tried to run for it. The creature immediately flew to him, encasing his body with its wings. Sarah, horrified, tried to run into the church. The creature dropped down before her and she screamed, but then, instead, went after an old priest. The Doctor and Angel quickly pushed the guests in.

"In!" Angel shouted, "In! Get in!"

More creatures appeared, diving towards the church doors, but the Doctor managed to shut them only moments before they reached them. The creatures screamed as they hit the door, trying to get in.

Everyone started to panic, talking amongst themselves as the Doctor looked around at the shadows of the creatures by the windows.

"They can't get in," Angel called, confirming his thoughts, "Old windows and doors. The older something is, the stronger it is. Like you."

He would have smiled at the compliment but his mind was otherwise occupied and so he just nodded, "What else?" a creature wailed outside, "Go and check the other doors! Move!" he ran off to check the doors on the right while Angel took the left. He pushed against a wooden door, testing it, as Jackie ran up to him.

"What's happening?" she asked, "What are they?" she shook his arm, "What ARE they?"

"An accident with time travel," Angel answered honestly from the other end of the room, not seeming to notice the woman's scoff or disbelieving stare, not quite aware that most humans didn't believe in time travel just yet, "It's created a wound in time, like an infection. They're trying to take advantage of it."

"What do you mean 'time?'" Jackie glared at her, "What're you jabbering on about, time?"

"Oh, I might've known you'd argue," the Doctor muttered, earning a glare from her as well, "Jackie, I'm sick of you complaining…"

"How d'you know my name?" she demanded, turning back to face him.

"I haven't got time for this…"

"I've never met you in my life!"

"No, and you never will unless I sort this out. Now, if you don't mind, I've waited a long time to say this, Jackie Tyler, do as I say. Go. And. Check. The. Doors!" he pointed towards the doors near the back of the church, his voice leaving little room for argument.

Jackie blinked, "Yes, sir."

He grinned, very pleased with himself, as Jackie walked away, "I should've done that _ages_ ago," he commented to Stuart as he approached.

"My dad was out there…" he began.

"You can mourn him later. Right now we've got to concentrate on keeping ourselves alive."

"My dad had…"

"There's NOTHING I can do for him."

"No. But he had this phone thing. I can't get it to work. I keep getting this voice..."

The Doctor dialed a number and held the phone to his ear, only to hear, "Watson, come here, we need you. Watson, come here, we need you."

His eyes widened, "That's the very first phone call, Alexander Graham Bell," he handed Stuart the phone again, "I don't think the telephone's gonna be much use."

He made to run and check another door when Stuart called over, "But someone must call the police!"

"Police can't help you now," the Doctor told him, "No one can," Angel looked over from checking one of the other doors as he slowly approached the group, "Nothing in this Universe can harm those things. Time's been damaged and they've come to sterilize the wound," he walked straight to Rose, staring at her meaningfully, "By consuming everything in sight."

Rose took a shaky breath, "Is this because...is this my fault?"

He gave her no answer, only a look.

Yes, yes it was.

He walked past her, moving to help Angel as Pete glanced at Rose, his brow furrowed, before looking at his daughter in her mobile cot.

~8~

Outside the creatures swarmed, all over London, all over the world, people disappearing everywhere.

~8~

The Doctor stepped into the church's anteroom where Pete was testing a door, making sure it was secure. He glanced out the window, Pete joining him.

"There's smoke coming up from the city but no sirens," Pete commented, "I…I don't think it's just us, I think these things are all over the place. Maybe the whole world."

The Doctor wasn't listening though, just staring out the window grimly, watching the car that was meant to kill Pete appear from nowhere, tires screeching as it rounded the corner, the driver throwing his hand over his face before disappearing.

"Was that a car?"

"It's not important," the Doctor replied after a moment, "Don't worry about it," he turned and left Pete still staring out the window.

~8~

The creatures clambered against the church, trying to get in, as Rose sat alone in a back room, looking as though she'd been crying. Pete walked over through the side door, his hands in his pockets, "These mates of yours..." he began, "What do you mean, this is your fault?"

"Dunno..." she sniffled, teary, "Just...everything."

"I gave you my car keys," he said suddenly. She turned to him, her eyes red, "You don't give your keys to a complete stranger," he struggled, trying to make sense of it, "It's...it's like I _trusted_ you. Moment I met you, I just _did_. A wound in _time_..." Rose chewed her lip, "You called me _dad_. I can see it...my eyes...Jackie's attitude...you sound like her when you shout..." he reached out and touched her face tentatively. Rose closed her eyes to feel it. He dropped his hand but Rose pulled it back to her face, "You are. You are...you're my Rose. You're my Rose grown up."

He threw his arms around her, pulling her to him as she sobbed, "Dad...my dad. My daddy..."

~8~

The Doctor and Angel dashed around the church, checking all possible exits as the creatures slammed against them, when Stuart and Sarah approached them.

"Excuse me!" Stuart called, "Mr..."

"Doctor," the Doctor muttered, not looking at him as he turned to watch Angel check a small side panel of the wall.

"Right. And Ms.…"

"Angel," she called, looking over her shoulder at them to offer a smile, "Nice to meet you."

He cleared his throat, "You seem to know what's going on."

"I give that impression, yeah," the Doctor replied, checking the lock on the door beside Angel.

"I just wanted to ask…"

"Can you save us?" Sarah cut in.

The Doctor turned to face them, walking towards them, just observing them, "Who are you two, then?"

"Stuart Hoskins," Stuart introduced.

"Sarah Clark," she added.

He looked down at Sarah's bump, "And one extra. Boy or girl?"

"I don't know," Sarah rubbed her stomach, "I don't want to know, really."

"Buy a bow," Angel called to them.

The Doctor looked over at her, "Hair bow or bowtie?"

She blinked, frowning as she stared at him, "Does it matter? Children wear all sorts of things."

He chuckled, shaking his head at how that wasn't very specific but turned back to the humans, "How did all this get started then?"

Sarah smiled as Stuart began to explain, "Outside the Big Box Club. Two in the morning."

"Street corner," she laughed, "I'd lost my purse. Didn't have money for a taxi."

"I took her home."

"Then what?" the Doctor smirked, "Asked her for a date?"

"Wrote his number on the back of my hand," Sarah nodded.

"Never got rid of her since," Stuart grinned, "My dad said…" he faltered, recalling both what his father had said and also what had happened to his father.

"That's alright," Angel said, standing up and walking past them, "My dad _hated_ my sister's Mate and they were happy together nearly 300 years."

Sarah and Stuart blinked as she walked to the other side of the church, not sure if they should take her seriously. They looked up at the Doctor who just waved them off. Angel wasn't quite as savvy with what to say or not say around humans just yet. It was entertaining though and, more often then not, he learned little things about her from what she said. They talked, a lot actually, at night, when Rose had gone to bed, not needing as much sleep as a human, about quite a number of things. But little slips like this, he liked learning new things about her, much like she liked hearing him talk.

He looked up as the creatures, Reapers, shrieked outside.

Sarah bit her lip, tears in her eyes, "I don't know what this is all about. And I know WE'RE not important..."

"Who said you're not important?" he frowned at her, stunned that she would think that, "I've travelled to all sorts of places. Done things you couldn't even imagine, but...you two...street corner. Two in the morning. Getting a taxi home. I've _never_ had a life like that. Yes," he nodded, "I'll try and save you."

"We both will," Angel agreed, walking past them again.

Sarah smiled at them both, laughing thankfully through her tears.

~8~

Rose sat in a side room of the antechamber with her father, sniffling, still a bit tearful.

"I'm a dad," he muttered, still trying to wrap his head around everything, "I mean, I'm _already_ a dad, but...Rose grows up, and she's _you_. That's _wonderful_. I suppose I thought that you'd be a bit…useless…what, with my useless genes and all, but..." Rose laughed slightly as Pete stared at her, fascinated, "How did you get here?"

"Do you really wanna know?"

"Yeah!"

"A time machine."

Pete was stunned, "Time machine."

She smiled, "Cross my heart."

He started to smile as well, "What, do they all have time machines where you come from?"

"Nah, just the Doctor."

"And…Angel, was it?"

"Sort of. She's travelling with the Doctor and I now."

"Did you know these things were coming?"

"No."

"God, I dunno, my head's spinning. What's the future like?"

"It's not so different."

"What am I like? Have I gone grey?" he laughed but Rose couldn't answer, just look at him, "Have I gone bald?" he asked, his smile fading, "Don't tell me I've gone bald," but Rose still didn't answer. He cleared his throat, getting a bad feeling from her silence, "So, if that bloke isn't _your_ boyfriend, and I have to say, I'm glad because, being your dad and all, I think he's a bit old for you..." Rose laughed, "Have you got a bloke?"

"No, I did have…" Rose began, when the sound of running footsteps reached them.

"Mickey!" Jackie shouted. Suddenly the little boy from before ran up to Rose and threw his arms around her legs, eyes shut tight.

"Do you know him?" Pete asked.

"I just didn't recognize him in a suit," Rose commented, stunned, "You'll have to let go of me sweetheart..." she gently pried his arms from around her and he stepped back to Jackie, "I'm always saying that..." she added under her breath.

"He just grabs hold of what's passing and holds on for dear life," Jackie sighed, putting her arms around his shoulders, "God help his poor girlfriend if he ever gets one."

"Me and Rose were just talking..." Pete began.

"Oh, yeah? Talking? While the world comes to an end, what do you do? Cling to the youngest blonde," Rose looked upset by that but didn't speak, "Come on, Mick," she took the boy's hand and led him away.

Pete made to follow but Rose grabbed his arm, pulling him back, "You _can't_ tell her."

"Why?" he frowned.

"I mean...I really don't WANT you to tell her."

"What, do you not want people to know?"

"Where I come from, Jackie doesn't know how to work the timer on the video recorder."

Pete grinned, "I showed her that last week," Rose nodded and his grin faded, "Point taken."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Very tiny (literally 1 word) hint at what will be coming for the Doctor and Angel. The Professor had Bonding, Evy had Linking, what will Angel have? Let's see if anyone spots it :) As for how long it will take them to get together...they'll definitely be growing closer during Series 1, but the actual pairing relationship will really come out, officially, at the end of the Christmas Invasion (though there is a spark of it right at the beginning of Series 2).
> 
> As for her age, I won't be specific till The Parting of the Ways (Rose's reaction is quite funny) but I can say she's in her 700s and this is currently her 9th incarnation. Which means her 8th was locked away for 50 years with a Dalek. That's a rubbish way to spend a body, poor Angel :( Next chapter though will see a little bit of a 'Doctor-like' reaction from Angel, a very sweet moment between the two (where we see why the Doctor didn't call her a companion), and learn a little more about her relationship with her sister :)
> 
> Her abilities, there'll be quite a few. I won't say what they are or how many but they will be linked together eventually. It may not seem like they are at first, but they will be :)


	9. Father's Day: Lost Hope

Angel smiled as she tickled Baby Rose's belly, getting the infant to giggle despite the Reapers ramming themselves against the church.

"You're quite good with her," the Doctor commented, coming to stand beside her, having watched her interact with the baby for a bit.

She smiled, "Thank you."

They were silent for a moment as the Doctor considered asking her a personal and perhaps very _painful_ question, "Were you…"

"No," she cut in, knowing what he was going to ask. She had mentioned her sister, her mother, told him a little of her father, but no mentions of other family members, of children, "I was content to take care of the TARDISes," he nodded, "But my sister…" she trailed, "My baby sister had a baby boy. Used to watch him for her sometimes."

She and her sister had a very close relationship. But also a little...complicated. Her mother had always wanted a girl, had been thrilled to discover she was pregnant with one, with _her_. Her father...hadn't been quite so excited. He hadn't been ready to be a father when she had been born, not even the typical three year pregnancy had given him enough time to prepare. He wasn't quite sure what to do. Nearly a century later, when her sister had been born, he'd matured enough, finally felt ready. He'd always had a closer relationship with her sister than he had with her, much like their mother had a closer relationship with her than her sister. When her mother had died, her father had been left with two daughters, one he wasn't quite sure what to do with, and she had been left without the person who knew her better than anyone, the person she talked to about her feelings.

She and her father...she loved him, she did, and she knew, in his own way, he loved her too but they would never have the relationship he had with her sister. She tried, she really had, to do what she could to be like her sister but she just...couldn't. Her sister was...elegant, refined, clever, high marks in the Academy, a proper Time Lady. She...she was content to wear her grimey clothes, walk around covered in grease from her work on the TARDISes, barely scraping by in school. Her little sister acted so much like an older sister to her. There were times they would spend together and her sister would brush her hair for her, try and comfort her when their father went a little too far in his criticisms, try to watch out for her, pull her out of the TARDISes and interact when she felt too much time had been spent there. But her reasoning was always that the TARDISes deserved care, attention, love. She could always just _tell_ when one needed work, what to do, how to handle them. Her sister never really understood why she was so drawn to the TARDISes, prefering them over the company of their people.

She didn't understand it either.

But then, her sister had met a young Time Lord and 'run away with him.' Not really, but her father had been fuming to learn that they were together, had joined themselves to each other at such a young age, barely out of the Academy. And then her sister had had her son...that was the only time she really left the TARDISes after her sister had left to be with her new family. To see her nephew, to spend time with him, and watch him for her. She loved that little boy, but the War came. And she'd lost everything.

She blinked and glanced at him, "Were you?"

He swallowed hard and nodded.

She reached out and took his hand for a moment, squeezing it in comfort.

He smiled in thanks, grateful that she didn't have to ask more and he didn't have to explain for her to understand, and turned to the baby, "Now, Rose...you're not gonna bring about the end of the world, are you?" he asked sternly, "Are you?"

They glanced up to see the older Rose coming towards them.

"Jackie gave her to me to look after," Angel explained.

The Doctor nodded, "I'm helping."

"And she told me to keep _him_ away from her," Angel added with a laugh.

"Nothing different there," the Doctor remarked with a roll of his eyes.

"I'd better be careful," Rose spoke, trying to lighten the mood but with tears in her voice, "I think I just imprinted myself on Mickey like a mother chicken," she smiled down at her baby self, reaching out towards her, only for the Doctor to grab her hand and push it back.

"No," he said, "Don't touch the baby."

The Reapers screeched particularly loudly.

"You're both the same person," Angel explained to Rose, "Touching her would create a paradox."

"And with these things outside, we _don't_ want a paradox happening. Anything new, any disturbance in time, makes them stronger. The paradox might let them in."

"Can't do anything right, can I?" Rose asked.

"Since you ask, no," the Doctor said, as though talking to an idiot, "So, Don't. Touch. The. Baby."

"I'm. Not. Stupid," she nearly spat at him, glaring.

"You. Could've. Fooled. Me," the Doctor replied. Rose looked away and the Doctor sighed, "Alright. I'm sorry," she looked back at him, "I wasn't _really_ gonna leave you on your own."

"I know."

"But between you and me, I haven't got a plan. No idea…" he looked over at Angel, "Any thoughts? Feelings?" she shook her head sadly, what with the world disappearing, there wasn't much left to feel for. He nodded, "No way out."

"You'll think of something," Rose said quietly.

"The entire Earth is being sterilized," the Doctor told her seriously, "This, and other places like it, are all that's left of the Human Race. We might hold out for a while, but _nothing_ can stop those creatures," he looked at the shadows circling the church, "They'll get through in the end. The walls aren't _that_ old. And there's nothing we can do to stop them," he sighed, "There used to be laws _stopping_ this kind of thing from happening, our people would have stopped this. But they're all gone…" Rose watched as, subconsciously, he took Angel's hand, "And now we're going the same way."

"If I'd realized..." Rose began.

He looked at her, "Just...tell me you're sorry."

"I am," she looked him in the eye, sincere, "I'm sorry."

"No, you're not," Angel cut in. Rose turned to her sharply, her mouth hanging open, "You're sorry that this _happened_ , but you're not sorry about what _caused_ it," Angel blinked a moment, before turning to the Doctor, "Is something burning?"

He looked at her oddly at the sudden change in topic but she just stepped up to him and reached into his jacket, pulling out a glowing golden key to the TARDIS.

His eyes widened at the sight and he quickly knocked it out of her hands, grabbing them to check if they were hurt, recalling what she'd said about burning, but they seemed fine.

"Is that the TARDIS key?" Rose asked, staring at the key on the ground.

The Doctor cast one more glance at Angel before sliding his jacket off and scooping the key up with it, "It's telling me it's still connected to the TARDIS!"

~8~

The Doctor stood above the altar, addressing the guests gathered around the church, "The inside of my ship was thrown out of a wound but we can use THIS to bring it back," he held up the key, "And once I've got my ship back, then I can mend everything. Now, I just need a bit of power. Has anybody got a battery?"

Stuart looked around, noticing his father's phone on the chair in front of him. He quickly jumped up and held it up to the Doctor, "This one big enough?"

The Doctor rushed over to him, looking at it, "Fantastic."

"Good old dad," Stuart remarked giving it to the Doctor, "There you go."

"Just need to do a bit of charging up..." he muttered, pressing the sonic to the battery, "And then we can bring everyone back," he glanced around the church as he charged it.

Jackie just looked warily back at the doors as they shook, the Reapers ramming against it.

~8~

Rose and Pete sat near the back of the church, just talking quietly.

"You, um...you never said _why_ you came here in the first place," Pete turned to her, "If I had a time machine, I wouldn't have thought 1987 was anything special. Not round here anyway."

"We just ended up here," she shrugged.

"Lucky for me, eh? If you hadn't been there to save me..."

"That was _just_ a coincidence. That was just...REALLY good luck. It's amazing..."

Pete looked at her as though he didn't quite believe it, "So, in the future, are me and her indoors still together?"

"Yeah."

"Are you still living with us?"

"Yep!" she smiled widely.

Pete nodded and smiled, looking at her intensely for a few moments, before asking the question he'd been dying to ask for a while now, "Am I a good dad?"

Rose swallowed hard, unable to find it in her heart to tell him the truth, "You...you told me a bedtime story every night when I was small. You were always there...you never missed one," she smiled, as though recalling an actual time, "And um...you took us for picnics in the country every Saturday. You never let us down. You were there for us all the time. Someone I could really rely on."

They were silent for a moment before Pete spoke, "That's not me."

Rose stopped smiling, looking back at the front of the church where the Doctor was standing in front of what seemed to be the TARDIS beginning to slowly materialize, phasing in and out. He quickly put his jacket on and grinned, dashing back up to the altar.

"Right, no one touches that key," he ordered, "Have you got that? Don't touch it. Anyone touches that key, it'll be, well, ZAP! Just leave it be and everything will be fine. We'll get out of here. All of us. Stuart, Sarah, you're gonna get married, just like I said," he grinned encouragingly at them before looking at the TARDIS.

Pete sat back, his gaze flickering to the window where Angel was standing, staring out intently. She glanced over at him, a sad look in her eyes before looking back, just watching as the car drove around the corner and disappeared once more.

~8~

Slowly but surely the TARDIS continued to materialize, everyone just sitting there, waiting for it to become solid enough to get them out. The Doctor sat in between Angel and Rose in the back of the church, Angel to his left, Pete sitting a row behind them when Jackie cast a contemptuous glance over her shoulder at Rose.

"When time gets sorted out..." Rose began quietly to the Doctor.

"Everybody here forgets what happened," the Doctor replied, "And don't worry, the thing that you changed will stay changed."

"You mean I'll still be alive," Pete remarked. Rose turned sharply to face him, "Though I'm meant to be dead," he nodded slowly, "That's why I haven't done anything with my life. Why I didn't MEAN anything."

"That's not the way it works at all," Angel said softly.

"Rubbish," he waved her off, "I'm so useless I couldn't even die properly. Now it's my fault all of this has happened."

Rose reached over suddenly and put her hand on his arm, "This is MY fault."

"No, love, I'm your _dad_. It's my job for it to be my fault."

"Her dad?" they looked up to see Jackie standing there, looking at him with disgust, "How are _you_ her dad? How old were you, twelve?"

The Doctor rolled his eyes at her.

"Is she this annoying in the future?" Angel asked him bluntly, forgetting she should probably have whispered that part with Jackie standing right there.

"Worse," he remarked, not bothering to comment on that before taking her hand and getting up, leading her off just enough to distance themselves.

"Oh, that's DISGUSTING!" Jackie continued.

"Jacks, listen," Pete got up, " _This_ is _Rose_."

" _Rose_?" she said in a low voice, growing more upset with each second, "How sick is that? You give my daughter a secondhand name? How many are there? Do you call them ALL Rose?"

"Oh, for God's sake, look! It's the SAME Rose!" he took the baby from Jackie's arms and moved to place her in Rose's, Rose reached out for the baby as well.

"Rose!" the Doctor started, "No!"

But he was too late.

He grabbed the baby from Rose's arms just as a Reaper appeared in the center of the church. The humans screamed at that, jumping up and running for the doors, "Everyone! Behind me!"

"Doctor don't!" Angel cried as everyone moved to gather behind him, the Reaper shrieked, spreading its wings.

"Watch out for them," the Doctor turned to her, looking at her meaningfully, before turning back to the Reaper, "I'm the oldest thing in here!"

The Reaper bore down on him.

"Doctor!" Rose shouted, terrified.

"No!" Angel screamed as the Reaper consumed the Doctor.

The other guests screamed as well.

The Reaper flew into the air, higher in the church, getting ready for another attack when it hit the semi-transparent TARDIS, disappearing, TARDIS and all. The key fell to the floor, no longer glowing.

There was silence for only a few seconds before Rose ran down the aisle and picked it up, "Cold," she gasped, in shock, "It's cold…" Pete slowly made his way to her, stepping past a panting and devastated Angel, looking nervously around the church, "Oh, my God, he's dead…" he put his hand on Rose's arm but she shook him off, "It's all my fault...all of you...both of you..." her voice cracked as the true impact of what had happened started to hit her, "...the whole world...it's my fault..."

"Yes!" Angel snapped, yanking the key from Rose's hand, "It is!"

"Hey now…" Pete began to defend his daughter.

"You bloody well couldn't just _listen_ could you!?" Angel glared at Rose, "He _warned_ you! He told you _not_ to _touch_ the baby! You imprudent human!"

"I'm sorry," Rose sobbed.

"You _don't_ understand," Angel shook her head at the girl, "You have _no idea_ what you have done."

Rose could not _possibly_ understand what she was feeling. Rose didn't _know_ what it felt like to have _everything_ ripped away from her and then be given just a tiny portion of it _back_ only for it to be _destroyed_ _in front of her_. She'd _just_ found another one of her people, realized she _wasn't_ alone, only for this stupid human to take even _that_ from her.

She was _fuming_. She'd never felt this angry before...this feeling...this was...this was something _beyond_ just the last of their kind taken away. But what...she didn't know.

"I'm so sorry," Rose wept, Pete pulling her into her arms.

"You will be. Because you've weakened everything, it won't take those things _nearly_ as long to break through as before."

"That's it then, isn't it?" Sarah whispered, "There's nothing we can do. It's the end."

"No," Angel said, moving her glare from Rose to the woman, "I can try to key into the ship, try and reconnect it to this," she held up the key, "It'll take time, probably more than we've got now," she shot her glare back to Rose, "But I'll _try_."

And with that, she turned and walked off to sit on the steps to the altar, resting her elbows on her knees and her hands to her head, clutching the key in both of them.

~8~

Pete looked out the window in the antechamber, having just double checked all the doors, seeing that they were holding for now. He watched the car loop around the corner and disappear…twice. He swallowed hard, realizing what was going on.

~8~

Rose sat in the back row in the dark church, silent with grief. She'd realized why Angel had yelled at her. It was her fault the Doctor, one of Angel's people, was gone. She'd seen the loneliness in the Doctor's eyes at the loss of his people. To get one back…only to lose them again…she shook her head.

"The Doctor really cared about you..." Pete said, standing before her with his jacket in his arms, she looked up at him, "He didn't want you to go through it again if there was another way. Now there isn't."

Rose stood, "What're you talking about?"

Neither of them noticed Angel open her eyes, the key just _faintly_ starting to glow in her hands.

"The car that should've killed me, love," Pete explained, putting on his jacket, "It's here. The Doctor worked it out way back, but he…he tried to protect me," he glanced back at Angel, sitting in the front of the church, getting up, before turning back to Rose, "Her too I imagine."

"Yes, I did," Angel said, walking towards them.

Rose looked between the two, her eyes filling with tears.

"Still…" Pete nodded, "He's not here and that key won't work in time. It's up to me now."

"But you can't..." Rose's voice broke, realizing what he was talking about.

Pete reached out and stroked her face, "Who am I love?"

"My daddy," Rose said tearfully as Jackie made her way over to them, looking at Rose with wide eyes.

"Jackie..." he turned to her, "Look at her. She's _ours_."

Jackie looked over at Rose, the truth dawning on her as Rose looked back tearfully, "Oh, God..." she breathed, pulling Rose into her arms, hugging her.

"I'm meant to be dead, Jackie," Pete explained as Jackie pulled away, "You're gonna get rid of me at last."

"Don't say that," Jackie said, holding back tears.

"For once in your life, trust me. It's gotta be done. You've got to survive, because you've got to bring up our daughter," he nodded at Rose before pulling Jackie into one last kiss. He sighed looking at Rose, "I never read you those bedtime stories. I never took you on those picnics. I was never there for you."

"You would've been," she said, crying.

"But I can do this for you. I can be a proper dad to you now."

"But it's not fair."

Pete looked at her softly, "I've had all these extra hours. No one else in the world has ever had that. And on top of that...I get to see you," he took her face in his hands, "And you're beautiful," Rose sobbed silently, "How lucky am I, eh? So, come on...do as your dad says," slowly, tears still flowing, Rose looked down and handed him the vase, "Are you going to be there for me, love?" she took a breath, nodding. Pete put a hand on her shoulder and looked into her eyes, "Thanks for saving me."

Angel watched as Pete Tyler pulled his wife and daughter into an embrace before dashing out of the church doors with the vase.

He ran outside and over to the gate, looking up as the Reapers started to bear down on him. He turned to see the car appear from thin air around the corner and ran straight out in front of it, screwing his eyes shut tight, "Goodbye, love..." he breathed.

The driver threw his hand over his eyes as the car knocked Pete over. The vase crashed to the ground, shattering. Instantly the Reapers disappeared. Rose stood outside the church doors her head down, her eyes closed, taking deep breaths.

The Doctor stepped out of the church behind her and looked at her a moment before putting a hand on her shoulder. She turned to look at him, "Go to him," he repeated, "Quick."

Rose dashed out of the church gates and down the road to kneel by her father, holding his hand as he died.

The Doctor turned around a moment later, only to catch a flying object in his arms. Angel clung tightly to him as he hugged her back, feeling her shaking as he tightened his grip.

"Don't you _ever_ do that again!" she shouted, her voice muffled from burying her face in his jacket.

He laughed and pulled back, "I'll try not to."

His smile turned to a frown as he took Angel's face in his hands, seeing the red in her eyes from her tears.

"I thought I'd _lost_ you," she whispered, " _Everything_ is _gone_. I _can't_ lose you too."

He swallowed hard, pulling her back into a tight hug. He'd been alone for so long, as had she, he realized. If it had been _her_ the Reaper took…he swallowed hard, he didn't want to be alone again either. He didn't _ever_ want to lose her, not again, not after having lost so much already.

"We'll take care of each other," he promised, "Keep each other safe."

She nodded into his coat, before pulling away, "I…I think I imprinted a bit of your personality when I regenerated."

"What makes you say that?"

"I yelled at Rose," she admitted guiltily, her stomach balling in knots at the thought. She was not _at all_ happy with how she had treated the woman when the Doctor had disappeared, but…she had been _so_ angry, and hurt, and lost, and alone, and scared…she shook her head, "Called her an imprudent human."

He nodded, understanding, he'd called them stupid apes enough times. They looked over to see Rose quietly crying at her father's side, the man who had saved them all lying, unmoving, beside her.

"Is she still one of the best?" Angel wondered out loud, recalling the Doctor's words to Adam.

His gaze hardened just a bit, "She only human."

No.

She nodded, frowning, before looking up at him again, "Does that mean _I'm_ one of the best?" she wasn't asking to be mean or arrogant, she was _genuinely_ confused. He hadn't even called her a companion to Adam...

He looked at her, his gaze softening, "I like to think you're _more_ than _just_ a simple companion," he told her honestly.

Whatever that more was she didn't know and, it seemed, he didn't either.

"Me too."

"Come on," he whispered, taking her hand as they walked over to Rose as other people came out of the church to see what the commotion was.

~8~

" _The driver was just a kid," Jackie sighed, "He stopped. He waited for the police. It wasn't his fault. For some reason...Pete just...ran out," she paused a moment, remembering, "People say there was this girl...and she sat with Pete while he was dying. And she held his hand. Then she was gone. Never found out who she was."_

~8~

Rose dropped a gentle kiss on her father's head before standing up and looking down at him a few moments. She lifted her head to meet the Doctor's sympathetic eyes and Angel's sad, apologetic ones. Rose nodded at Angel in forgiveness before taking a breath and walking over to them.

Angel reached out as soon a Rose was near enough and pulled her into a tight hug, knowing how badly it hurt to witness such a thing, remembering how much she had just wanted someone to hold her as she mourned but no one had been there. She held Rose to her as the girl put her arms around her as well, hugging her back as she sobbed.

"It's alright," Angel whispered, rubbing her back, "It'll be alright Rose..." she gently shifted, putting her arm around Rose's shoulders, before leading her back into the TARDIS with the Doctor.

~8~

_"Peter Alan Tyler, my dad," Rose murmured, "The most wonderful man in the world. Died the 7th of November, 1987."_

* * *

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Awww, how cute was that little scene between the Doctor and Angel, she's MORE than just a companion to him :) How much more? Well, maybe you guessed right! Mating! (lol, I giggle at the word :)) BUT! We'll have to wait till the Christmas Invasion for that to even START happening, and then we'll learn more about exactly what it means in this story-universe during New Earth :)
> 
> Notice how the gold TARDIS key didn't burn Angel when, in the episode, it burned the Doctor? I sort of see it as...cooks spend their lives in the kitchen and build up a little tolerance for heat, such as being able to hold onto a slightly hot cookie tray or something. Angel's spent her life around TARDISes, quite a few centuries (we'll find out how old she is in The Parting of the Ways), so she's probably built up a tolerance to things like that as well...or is there something more to it? Hmmm...
> 
> Also, the bit about imprinting a little of the Doctor upon regeneration (I take it as his temper lol). Idk where, but I read somewhere that DT described the Doctor's change in accent between 9 and 10 as 'imprinting' a bit of Rose, so I thought, that's interesting :) I'll just say, Angel imprinted a bit of Rose too as can be seen by Pete's comments on her being Rose's sister and a reason why he might think that (-cough-hair-cough-) :)


	10. The Empty Child: Hold on Rose!

The TARDIS hurtled through space, nearly knocking the trio off their feet as they gathered around the console.

"What's the emergency?" Rose shouted.

"It's mauve," the Doctor said, rushing over to the monitor as the TARDIS shuddered and shook around them.

"Mauve?" Rose shook her head.

"That's the universal color for danger, isn't it?" Angel frowned, pushing a lever up on the console, keeping them locked on the object. It made sense that they'd be following such an object, they'd just come from the Eye of Orion, having taken Rose there to recuperate from the whole fiasco with her father, they'd _just_ taken off when the object went zooming past.

"What happened to red?"

"That's just humans," the Doctor answered, "By everyone else's standards, red's camp. Oh, the misunderstandings. All those red alerts, all that dancing," he gestured to the object that they were following, looking like a rather large cylinder on the monitor, "It's got a very basic flight computer, I've hacked in and Angel slaved the TARDIS. Where it goes, we go."

"And how safe is it?"

"Totally," the Doctor said, hitting a button on the console which just exploded beneath him, "Ok, _reasonably_. Should have said reasonably there."

"That's the wrong button!" Angel shouted, leaning half-over the console to twist a knob.

The Doctor looked back at the monitor, his eyes widening, "Oh, no, no, no, no, no! It's jumping time tracks, getting away from us."

"What exactly _is_ this thing?" Rose looked at it.

"No idea," Angel made her way over to them.

"And why are we chasing it?"

"It's mauve and dangerous," the Doctor said, as though it should explain everything, "And about 30 seconds from the center of London."

~8~

The TARDIS materialized in London, behind a rather dreary set of houses in an alleyway. Rose stepped out into the night followed by the Doctor and Angel.

"Do you know how long we can knock around space without having to bump into Earth?" the Doctor asked sarcastically.

"Five days?" Rose guessed, "Or is that just when we're out of milk?"

"Of all the species, in all the Universe, and it has to come out of a _cow_ ," he remarked as they walked away from the TARDIS, "Must have come down somewhere quite close. Within a mile, anyway. And it can't have been more than a few weeks ago. Maybe a month."

"A month?! We were _right_ behind it!"

"Jumping time tracks will do that to you," Angel shrugged, as though it explained everything.

The Doctor smiled at that. Angel was...remarkable when it came to time travel knowledge. Well, life among TARDISes would make anyone quite the expert he assumed. But it always amused him when she would start talking about it. She didn't speak as fast as he tended to do, more like she was just commenting on something for a long while. But she would use all these complicated words, well, complicated to humans, and Rose would just stare at her with a look on her face that made him think Rose had just dribbled on her shirt or something. But then Angel would seem to realize that human had no idea what on Earth, what in the Universe, she was talking about and would plop down beside her and try to explain it more simply.

Which always killed his amusement as the fun would be over and Rose would _actually_ seem to grasp what was being said.

He'd laughed though when he'd asked her why she bothered trying to teach a human about time travel once when they worked on the TARDIS after Rose had gone off to bed. She'd just said even monkeys can learn sign language, as though it equated to humans learning about time travel. That seemed to be one of her 'sensations' leaking through as their next trip had them run into Jane Goodall...Rose had nearly been kidnapped by a male Gorilla and Angel seemed to have been adopted into a small family by two of the babies while he'd had a nice chat with the remarkable woman, observing it all from the top of a tree.

The Doctor nodded, getting back to the moment at hand, "We're bound to be a little bit out. Do YOU wanna drive?"

"Yes," Angel turned to him. He shook his head fondly and she blinked, "Rhetorical?"

"Yup."

"Right."

"Yeah," Rose gave a little laugh at that, she'd been trying to help Angel with picking up on cues and things. The girl...that girl had been _unbelievable_ to her after they'd gotten back into the TARDIS from her father's accident. So kind to her, despite the fact that she'd basically killed the Doctor on accident. But Angel had just waved it off saying she had the Doctor back now, but Rose had just lost her father. She hadn't left her alone, at all, claiming she didn't want Rose to feel sad or lonely. When Angel had tried to follow her into the toilet in that very quest, she'd just started laughing, tears in her eyes that weren't from sadness for the first time in what felt like ages.

Rose shook her head, "How much is 'a little?'"

"A bit."

"Is that EXACTLY a bit?"

"Ish."

Rose rolled her eyes, "What's the plan then? Are you gonna do a scan for alien tech or something?"

"Rose, it hit the middle of London with a very loud _bang_. I'm gonna _ask_ ," he held out the psychic paper to her.

"'Doctor John Smith and Assistant Angela Jones,'" Rose read, "'Ministry of Asteroids.'"

"Psychic Paper, tells you…"

"Whatever you want it to tell me, I remember."

"Sorry."

"Can I see?" Angel asked, looking at the paper in the Doctor's hand, "I've heard of psychic paper, but I've never actually _seen_ one before," the Doctor _had_ used it during their stint in Satellite 5, but it had been very brief and she hadn't even noticed it was psychic paper at the time.

"Sure," he grinned, handing it over.

She looked at it and frowned, "…it's blank," she looked at him, concerned, "Did I do something wrong? Is it broken?"

"Nah," he took it back, looking at her proudly, "You're just too smart for it."

"Right," she laughed at that. HER, smart. That was funny.

Rose, seeming to sense that, stepped over and linked her arm with Angel's, "I think you'd be better as a Tyler than a Jones," she remarked.

"Why's that?" Angel asked, she rather liked the sound of how it was, "Smith and Jones, it's nice."

"Yeah," Rose nodded, nudging her, "But we'll have a hard time explaining to mum why my 'sister' has a different last name."

Angel blinked, "Wouldn't it be harder to explain to your mother why she has another daughter she doesn't remember being pregnant with?"

Rose laughed and shook her head, she really liked Angel's moments where things just went over her head, "It was a joke, 'cos dad kept calling you my sister," she reached up and tugged on a tiny strand of blonde hair that had fallen out of Angel's clip.

"Oh," Angel nodded, getting it, "Well, in that case, I think you ought to be a Jones then instead."

Rose smiled, "Can't. Was born a Tyler," she nodded, "Like you were born a..." she frowned, "What IS your name?" she asked, looking between her and the Doctor, "I mean, no offense, but no one would _ever_ name their kid 'the Doctor.'"

Angel shook her head, "We can't say."

"What, at all?"

"It's forbidden," the Doctor nodded, walking beside them, his hands in his pockets.

"So you two don't know what the other's name is?" Rose frowned, it was...weird.

"Nope."

"There's only _one time_ we're allowed to tell someone else our name," Angel added.

"And when's that then?" Rose eyed them.

The Doctor, instead of answering, just turned around in a circle, still walking, "Where DID it come down?" he wondered.

Rose rolled her eyes at the change in topic but let it go, she knew that talking about their past and planet was a touchy subject. She was rather happy though that she just managed to gather even _that_ from them, "Well, if you scan for alien tech you'd know!"

"The Doctor just likes talking to people," Angel commented.

"But it's not very Spock, is it?" Rose shook her head, "Just _asking_?"

The Doctor leaned over, trying to get through a door ahead of them, "Door, music, people. What d'you think?"

"I think you should do a scan for alien tech," Rose repeated. The Doctor just ignored her and pulled out his sonic, using it on the door, "Gimme some Spock! For _once_ , would it kill ya?"

"Are you sure about that t-shirt?" the Doctor looked up at her wearing a Union Flag t-shirt.

"Too early to say," she looked down at it, "I'm taking it out for a spin."

The Doctor just turned back to the lock.

"Muuuu-mmy?" Rose spun around, hearing a whisper, "Muuuu-mmy?" she glanced over, only to see the Doctor and Angel hadn't seemed to notice.

The Doctor pulled the door open, managing to crack the lock. He looked over at Rose, having taken Angel's hand, "Come on if you're coming. Won't take a minute."

"Hold on tight Rose!" Angel called back when Rose made no move to follow them in.

"Muuuuumy?"

Rose looked up to see a blonde child wearing a gasmask and standing on a rooftop, "Doctor?" she called urgently, "Angel! There's a _kid_ up there!" but they had already disappeared inside, so she ran off, trying to find a way onto the roof.

~8~

The Doctor led Angel through a dim hall, towards the music and the light chatter of voices, till they found themselves in a crowded drinking den, smoke wafting around, people mingling.

"For nobody else gave me the thrill," a woman was singing up on a small platform, "When I have found I love you still, it had to be you, wonderful you..."

~8~

Rose ran up to the building the child was standing on, shouting up to him, "Are you alright up there?"

"Muuuuum-my?"

Rose ran up the steps on the side of it.

~8~

"It had to be you," the woman finished up. The audience clapping at the performance, the Doctor joining in.

"Wait here," he whispered to Angel, before making his way to the stage, "Excuse me! Excuse me!" he tapped the microphone, "Could I have everybody's attention just for a mo? Be very quick, eh...hello!" he gave them a happy wave, "Eh...might seem like a stupid question, but has anything fallen from the sky recently?"

Crickets could have started chirping in the silence that followed, the Doctor just standing there with a grin, looking around expectantly.

Then the audience burst into laughter.

The Doctor and Angel looked around at them all, not quite sure what was so funny.

~8~

Rose finished climbing the steps but it didn't go all the way up to the small rooftop where the child was standing precariously on the edge, "Mummy?"

"Ok, hold on!" she called up, "Don't move!"

He looked down at her as a rope swung into view, going up the side of the building.

Rose quickly grabbed it.

~8~

The audience was _still_ laughing as the Doctor frowned, "Sorry, have I said something funny?" that only made them laugh harder, "It's just, there's this thing I need to find, would've fallen from the sky a couple of days ago..."

A siren went off.

The patrons stood and rushed for the doors, trying to evacuate the room as Angel looked around, following their actions with her eyes.

"Would've landed quite near here..." the Doctor looked up at the ceiling where the sirens were coming from as Angel's gaze drifted over to something taped to the wall, "With a very loud..."

"Doctor!" Angel called.

He looked over to where she was standing, pointing at a poster tacked to the wall beside her, saying, 'Hilter will send no warning.'

"Bang…" he realized.

~8~

Rose climbed up the rope, using it as leverage to walk up the side of the roof.

"Mummy..." the child called as Rose puffed and panted, trying to climb, "Balloon!"

The rope suddenly moved away from the building, Rose still hanging onto it.

She looked up to see it was, in fact, hanging down from a barrage balloon now moving towards town, "Doctor!" she shouted, terrified, "Angel! Doctor!" she swung around to see German planes dropping bombs on the city, "Ok...maybe NOT this t-shirt."

The planes zoomed _right_ at her.

~8~

The Doctor and Angel ran out of the drinking den, into the alley, "Rose!" the Doctor shouted, looking around, only to see Rose had gone. He looked down to see the TARDIS still parked there, when a noise came from the bins beside him. He looked over to see a cat sitting on it.

"Oh," Angel smiled, seeing it as well. She reached out and scooped it into her arms, petting it lightly, "Aren't you adorable!"

The Doctor smiled at her, reaching forward to pet the cat a bit as well, "You know...one day. Just one day, maybe...I'm gonna meet someone who gets the whole 'don't wander off' thing."

Angel laughed at that, when the TARDIS phone suddenly went off. The Doctor slowly turned around, frowning. Angel gently put the cat down, also eyeing the TARDIS as they both made their way towards it. The Doctor opened a compartment behind the white writing panel to see an old phone hidden behind it.

He just stared.

"How can you be ringing?" he asked seemed to be asking the phone, "What's that about? Ringing?" he took the sonic out and glanced at Angel, "What am I supposed to do with a ringing phone?"

She shrugged, "Answer it?"

" _Don't_ answer it!" a voice behind them warned. They turned to see a girl in a thick coat and pigtails standing in the alley, "It's not for you."

The Doctor looked at her questioningly, "And how do you know that?"

"'Cos I do," she said simply, "And I'm tellin' ya, _don't_ answer it."

"Well, if you know so much, tell me this, how can it be ringing?" he asked, looking at the phone, "It's not even a real phone. It's not CONNECTED, it's not…" he looked up to see the girl had disappeared. He paused, confused, looking at Angel who could only shake her head, having no idea either, before looking back at the phone.

Hesitantly he answered, holding it to his ear, "Hello?" no reply, "This is the Doctor speaking," just a static noise, "How may I help you?"

"Mummy?" a boy's voice called out. Angel looked up at the Doctor questioningly as he started to frown. He held out the earpiece between them so they could both hear, "Mummy?"

"Who is this? Who's speaking?"

"Are you my mummy?"

"Who is this?"

"Mummy?"

"How did you RING here? This isn't a real phone, it's not wired up to anything, it's…"

"Mummy?"

The line went dead and the Doctor put the phone back.

"Rose?" Angel called, opening the door to check for the girl inside, "Rose, are you in there?"

Suddenly a crash sounded behind them.

The Doctor quickly closed the phone compartment and they turned and ran, following the sound down the alley and to the street. He took a few more steps in, looking around as Angel stopped and turned to look at a part of the fence along the way.

"The planes are coming!" a woman called. The Doctor turned around to see Angel looking at the fence and joined her, "Can't you hear them? Into the shelter. None of your nonsense, now MOVE it!"

They both headed to the rubbish bins before the fence, looking over it to see a rather plump woman half-pushing a small boy into a shelter, "Come on, come on, get in there," she looked back at the house, "Arthur! Arthur! Will you hurry up? Didn't you hear the sirens?"

Another rather plump person stepepd out of the house as well, a man, "Middle of dinner, every night. Bloomin' Germans," he made a fist and shook it up at the planes, "Don't you eat?"

The Doctor chuckled quietly.

"I can hear the planes!" the woman shouted.

"Don't you eat?!"

"Oh, keep your voice down, will ya?" she ushered him towards the shelter, "There's an air raid!" she followed him in, "Get in...there's a war on."

"I know there is…" the man said, closing the door.

As soon as it was shut, the pigtailed girl crept out from behind the shelter and snuck into the house through the back door, not even noticing the Doctor and Angel watching her head to the kitchen to scavenge for food.

~8~

Rose hung, suspended hundreds of feet above London, carried by the rope of the balloon, screaming as planes whizzed past her, watched through a pair of advanced binoculars held by a uniformed man stood on the balcony of a nearby building.

"Get those lights out please!" an officer behind the man shouted, "Come on, down to the shelter."

Another soldier walked over to the man holding binoculars, "Jack? Are you going down to the shelter? Only, I've got to go off on some silly guard duty," he glanced up at the balloon, unable to see the girl hanging below it, "Ah! Barrage Balloon, eh? Must've come loose. Happens now and then. Don't you RAF boys use them for target practice?"

Jack zoomed in on Rose's bum, "Excellent bottom."

"I say, old man," the soldier remarked, embarrassed, "There's a time and a place. Look, you should really be off."

Jack turned to face him, "Sorry, _old man_ ," he laughed, heading inside, "I've gotta go and meet a girl. But you've got an excellent bottom too," he slapped his pal's bottom on the way out to emphasize his point, the man looking strangely pleased by it.

~8~

The girl stuffed a few things into her bag and quickly left the kitchen, passing by a well lit room. She stopped, looking back inside at a meal laid out on the table before smiling. She ran outside, whistling three times, before rushing back in. She pulled off her coat and stood next to the table just as some children hurried inside.

"Many kids out there?" she asked them.

"Eh...yes, miss," one of the boys replied before they ran to the table, making for the food.

"Ah, still carving," she chastised, "Sit and wait," they quickly did as she instructed, "We've got the whole air raid," she carved the meat carefully.

"Look at that," the first boy replied, eyeing the meat, "Bet it's off the black market."

"That's enough," she warned, though smiling as she did so.

~8~

Another round of planes whizzed past Rose, causing an explosion right under her. She struggled to hold on but couldn't, losing her grip and falling towards the flames, screaming…

Suddenly a blue beam shot out from somewhere near Big Ben and caught her, suspending her in the air.

"Ok, ok, I've got you," a man called up to her with a distinct American accent.

"Who's got me?" she shouted, both scared and surprised, "Who's got me, and you know...how?"

"I'm just programming your descent pattern. Keep as still as you can and keep your hands and feet inside the light field."

"Descent pattern?"

"Oh, and could you switch off your cell phone?" she made a disbelieving noise, "No, seriously, it interferes with my instrument."

"You know, no one _ever_ believes that," she remarked, fumbling to get her phone, turning it off.

"Thank you. That's much better."

"Oh, yeah, that's a _real_ load off, that is!" she shouted, hysterical, "I'm hanging _in the sky_ in the middle of a _German air raid_ with the _Union Jack across my chest_ , but hey! My mobile phone's off!"

The man laughed, "Be with you in a moment."

~8~

Jack sat back in the seat of his spaceship as the computer announced, "The mobile communication device indicates non-contemporaneous life form."

"She's not from around here, no," he agreed, before reaching for the comm., "Ready for you. Hold tight!"

"To what?!" she shouted.

"Fair point," he countered before setting off the beam.

Rose zoomed feet first down the tunnel of blue light, screaming, till she landed safely in his arms.

"I've got you!" he called as she coughed, "You're fine, you're just fine. The tractor beam, it can scramble your head just a little."

Rose suddenly seemed to notice that he was quite good looking and stared at him, "Hello," she greeted, breathless.

"Hello," he grinned back, looking her up and down.

"Hello," she repeated, still gazing at him. He raised his eyebrows and nodded, and she seemed to realize what she'd said, "Sorry, that was hello twice there. Dull, but you know, thorough."

"Are you alright?"

"Fine!" she shouted before he set her on her feet, "Why, are you expecting me to faint or something?" she grinned up at him.

"Well, you _do_ look a little dizzy..."

"What about you?" she laughed, "You're not even _focused_...oh boll..."

He laughed as her eyes rolled back in her head and she fainted in his arms. He just shook his head and gently placed her on the bed to rest and recover.

~8~

The dining room was now full of children, gathered around the table, waiting for their meal as the girl cut the meat.

"It's GOT to be black market," one of the boys whispered, "He _couldn't_ get all this on _coupons_."

"Ernie, how many times?" the girl turned to him severely, "We are _guests_ in this house. We will _not_ make comments of that kind. Washing up."

The other children laughed at his expense.

"Oh, Nancy!" Ernie complained.

Nancy looked at one of the boys sitting nearest her, "Haven't seen _you_ at one of these before."

" _He_ told me about it," the boy nodded at the boy next to him.

"Sleeping rough?"

"Yes, miss."

"Alright then," she nodded, handing the plate around, "One slice each, and I want to see everyone chewing properly."

"Thank ya, miss!" one of the boys shouted.

"Thanks miss!" Ernie added.

"Thank you miss," another boy took a slice.

"Thanks miss!" the Doctor said, taking a slice as well.

The children jerked back, startled, fearing they were in trouble at the sight of not just one but _two_ adults, the man sitting before them in the black leather jacket, helping himself calmly, and the blonde woman in the blue duster standing by the window, looking out, keeping watch on the air raid...or possibly, for something else...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you liked the little moment between Rose and Angel at the start of the chapter. There's definitely something that will be reflected in that scene in the rest of the series when it comes to other companions and their relationships with Angel :) It just starts here. (Yay! Captain Jack! Gotta love him :)) Notice how Rose wasn't an 'assistant' on the psychic paper? There's a reason for that which Rose herself will comment on in the Doctor Dances :) And...fun note about Angel's name, I had very specific things I needed it to do. One was be tweaked slightly into a second human name. Hence, Angela :) I thought, the Doctor goes around as Doctor but gets called John Smith sometimes. Technically, Angel is her title, even though it could be a name, so I thought she should really have a name like that too, Smith and Jones lol :)


	11. The Empty Child: Mummy?

"It's alright!" Nancy called, "Everybody stay where you are!"

"Good here, innit?" the Doctor grinned at them, "Who's got the salt?"

"Back in your seats! They shouldn't be here either."

The Doctor just helped himself to some sauce, "So, you lot...what's the story?"

"What d'you mean?" Ernie shook his head.

"You're homeless, right? Living rough?"

"Why d'you wanna know that?" one of the older boys asked, "Are you a copper?"

"Of course I'm not a copper. What's a copper gonna do with you lot anyway? Arrest you for starving?" that earned him a little laugh from them, breaking the tension, "I make it 1941, you lot shouldn't be in London. You should've been evacuated to the country by now."

"I _was_ evacuated," the new boy replied, "They sent me to a farm."

"So why'd you come back?"

"There was a man there..."

"Yeah, same with Ernie," the older boy remarked, "Two homes ago."

"Shut up," Ernie elbowed him, "It's better on the streets anyway. Better food."

"Yeah, Nancy always gets the _best_ food for us."

The Doctor shot Nancy a grin, "So, that's what you do is it, Nancy?"

"What is?" Nancy looked over.

"As soon as the sirens go, you find a big fat family meal, still warm on the table with everyone down in the air raid shelter and bingo!" he gestured around, "Feeding frenzy for the homeless kids of London Town. Puddings for all! As long as the bombs don't get you."

"Something wrong with that?" she raised an eyebrow at him.

"Oh no," Angel replied gently from the window, "He loves it."

The Doctor laughed, "It's BRILLIANT _._ I'm not sure if it's Marxism in action or a West End musical."

The children just looked at him, not quite following.

"Why'd you follow me?" Nancy frowned, "What d'you want?"

"I want to know how a phone that isn't a phone gets a phone call. You seem to be the one to ask."

"I did you a favor. I told you not to answer it, that's all I'm telling ya."

"Great, thanks. And I wanna find a blonde in a Union Jack. I mean a specific one. I didn't just wake up this morning with a craving," the children laughed, though Nancy looked unimpressed, "Anybody seen a girl like that?" Nancy stood up and grabbed his plate away, "What've I done wrong?"

"You took two slices," she replied as the children laughed _at_ him now, "No blondes, no flags. Anything else before you leave?"

"Yeah, there is actually. Thanks for asking. Something I've been looking for, would've fallen from the sky about a month ago, but not a bomb," he took a notebook out of his coat pocket, "Not the usual kind anyway. Wouldn't have exploded. Would've just buried itself in the ground somewhere, and it would've looked something like..." he sketched quickly, "This," he flipped it around to show them a rather badly drawn cylinder.

Nancy looked at it intently but said nothing, which Angel noticed.

Suddenly a knock sounded on the window, the children gasped as "Mummy? Are you in there, mummy?" was spoken.

Angel turned back to the window and pulled the curtain away, standing out side, knockign was a blonde child with a gasmask on, "Mummy?"

"Who was the last one in?" Nancy looked around urgently.

"Them," Ernie pointed at the Doctor and Angel.

"Nah, they came round the back. Who came in the front?"

"Me," the new boy breathed.

"Did you close the door?"

"I..."

"Did you close the door?!"

"Mummy?" the child repeated, his shadow moving from the window towards the door, "Mummy? Muuuuum-my?"

Nancy ran out of the room and to the front door, shutting it and bolting it before the child could get in. She stepped back, watching the shadow of the child through the window, terrified.

"What's this, then?" the Doctor called as he and Angel stepped into the hallway, both looking at the shadow with concern, "It's never easy being the only child left out in the cold, you know."

"I suppose you'd know."

"I do actually, yes," he grinned at her.

"It's not exactly a child."

"Muuum-my?"

"Neither is she," Angel whispered quietly as Nancy rushed back into the dining room.

The Doctor frowned, eyeing Nancy through the archway into the dining room.

"Right, everybody out, across the back garden and under the fence," Nancy ordered as the children looked at her, "Now! Go! Move!" they all jumped up out of their seats and ran for the door while Nancy put her coat on. She rushed over to a little girl's side, "Come on, baby. You've got to go. Ok? It's just like a game. Just like chasing," the little girl hopped off her chair, "Take your coat, go on," the little girl grabbed it and ran out, "Go!"

The Doctor and Angel watched them rush about, one confused, the other concerned.

"Mummy?" the child drew the Doctor's attention, he took a few steps towards the door, "Please let me in mummy," a small, scarred hand reached in through the letter slot, "Please let me in mummy."

"Are you alright?" the Doctor asked.

"Please let me in."

Angel pulled him back as something smashed on the door, forcing the child to withdraw his hand.

"You mustn't let him touch ya!" Nancy warned, staring at the door.

"What happens if he touches me?" the Doctor looked at her.

"He'll make you like him."

"And what's he like?"

Nancy turned away, "I've gotta go."

"Nancy, what's he like?"

Nancy was silent a moment.

"Empty," Angel answered with a blink.

Nancy glanced over at her and nodded, just as the phone rang and they all looked at it, "It's him. He can make phones ring, he can. Just like with that police box you saw."

The Doctor and Angel glanced at the shadow of the child outside the door before Angel stepped forward and answered it.

"Are you my mummy?" the child's voice came over the line.

Nancy snatched it back and hung up.

The radio turned on then, playing music tuned to the child's voice, "Mummy? Please let me in mummy."

The Doctor stepped into the room, fiddling with the radio's tuner when a toy monkey turned itself on, the child's voice playing through the ringing, "Mum-my? Muuum-my, muum-my..."

"Stay if you want to," Nancy said as the Doctor examined the toy.

"Mum-my, mum-my, mum-my..."

"Doctor," Angel called.

He looked up to see her back in the hallway and joined her, the child with his arm through the letter slot once more, "Mummy? Let me in please, mummy..." the Doctor slowly approached it, kneeling down, as Angel stood close behind him, both looking at the scarred hand in concern, "PLEASE let me in."

"Your mummy isn't here," the Doctor told him gently.

"Are you my mummy?"

"No mummies here. None be here but us chickens," he looked behind him at the deserted house, winking at Angel reassuringly before turning to the door again, "Well, TWO chickens."

"I'm scared."

"Why are those other child frightened of you?" Angel asked softly.

"Please let me in mummy. I'm scared of the bombs."

The Doctor paused in thought a moment, "Ok. I'm opening the door now."

The child withdrew his hand form the slot, the Doctor pulling the bottom bolts back and standing up. He looked over his shoulder at Angel before turning to the door and throwing it open.

No one was there.

They walked out onto the porch, down the path to the house, and onto the street, looking around, but there was nothing.

~8~

Rose blinked, waking slowly to the gentle hum of an engine. Realizing she was in a bed, she quickly got up and looked around.

"Better now?" Jack called.

She turned to him, "You got lights in here?"

He reached over from his position on the pilot's seat and turned them on, "Hello."

"Hello," she winced a bit at the lights.

He grinned, "Hello."

"Let's not start that again," Rose smiled.

Jack laughed, "Ok."

She pulled her t-shirt down self-consciously and took a few steps towards him, "So, um...who're you supposed to be then?"

"Captain Jack Harkness. 133 Squadron Royal Air Force, American Volunteer," he handed her his ID card.

"Liar," she remarked, looking at the paper before holding it up to him, " _This_ is psychic paper. It tells me whatever you want it to tell me."

He smiled, caught, "How do you know?"

"Two things. One, I have a friend who uses this _all_ the time."

"Ah," he nodded.

"And two, you just handed me a piece of paper telling me you're single and you work out."

He leaned forward to take it back, "Tricky things, psychic paper."

"Yeah, can't let your mind wander when you're handing it over."

"Oh, you 'sort of' have a boyfriend called Mickey Smith," he looked down at the paper, "But you consider yourself to be footloose and fancy free."

She laughed, embarrassed, "Wha…"

"Actually, the word you use is 'available,'" he grinned at her.

"No way," she shook her head.

"And another one, 'very,'" he winked at her.

"Shall we uh...try and get along WITHOUT the psychic paper?" she asked, standing up.

"That would be better, wouldn't it?" he agreed, also standing.

"Nice spaceship," she looked around.

"Gets me around."

She ran a hand across the ceiling, "Very...Spock," she glanced at him, hoping for recognition, but found none.

"Who?"

"Guessing you're not a local boy, then."

"A cell phone," he looked at his wrist pad, having scanned it and her while she'd been stuck mid-air, "A liquid crystal watch, and fabrics that won't be around for _at least_ another two decades...guessing you're not a local girl."

Rose plopped down in the pilot's seat, examining the spaceship, "Guessing right," she tried to touch something but pulled back quickly, gasping in pain, looking at her hands which had burn marks on them.

"Burn your hands on the rope?"

"Yeah," she nodded, looking out the window, "We're parked in mid-air! Can't anyone down there see us?"

"No. Can I have a look at your hands for a moment?"

"Why?"

"Please?" he asked, sitting by her. She held out her hands as he ran a scanner over them, "You can stop acting now. I know _exactly_ who you are. I can spot a Time Agent a mile away."

"Time Agent?" she raised an eyebrow.

"I've been expecting one of you guys to show up. Though not, I must say, by barrage balloon. Do you often travel that way?"

She smiled, "Sometimes I get swept off my feet. By balloons," he took his scarf off and wrapped it around her wrists, "What're you doing?"

"Try to keep still," he told her, binding her hands before leaning over to flick a switch near her head. They caught each other's eye, _very_ aware of how close they were. There was a beeping noise and tiny golden fireflies appeared above the wounds on her hands, "Nanogenes. Sub-atomic robots. The air in here's full of them," Rose looked on, amazed, as the nanogenes worked their magic, healing her burns. Jack switched the button again and they disappeared, "They just repaired three layers of your skin."

"Well, tell them thanks!" she laughed as he pulled off his scarf.

"We'll get down to business," he smiled and stood.

"Business?"

He picked up a bottle of champagne, "Shall we have a drink on the balcony?" he pressed a button and steps to the top of the ship lowered into the room, "Bring up the glasses."

He turned and walked up the steps, coming to stand on top of his invisible spaceship. He uncorked the bottle as Rose, looking unsteady, stepped up as well, holding two glasses.

"I'm standing on something..." she laughed nervously, not wanting to look straight down at the streets below. Jack chuckled and pulled out a device from his pocket, flicking a switch to make his spaceship visible, "Ok...you have an invisible spaceship..."

"Yeah."

She looked over, seeing where they were floating, "Tethered up to Big Ben for some reason..."

"First rule of active camouflage. Park somewhere you'll remember," he popped the cork with a loud bang, making Rose laugh, before he filled up their glasses.

~8~

Nancy made her way along the train tracks in a wasted area, hurrying along to lonely little run down house and taking food out of her bag, when she suddenly spun around to see the Doctor and Angel standing there.

"How'd you follow me here?" she eyed them.

"I'm good at following," he grinned.

"And I'm very quiet," Angel added.

"And I've got the nose for it," the Doctor finished.

She frowned, "People can't usually follow me if I don't want them to."

"My nose has special powers."

"Yeah? That why it's, uh..."

"What?" he asked as Angel giggled.

"Nothing."

"What?"

"Nothing!" Nancy grinned, teasing him, "Do your ears have special powers too?"

"What're you trying to say?" he asked her calmly, already realizing what she'd been implying before.

Angel leaned over, "That your nose and ears are a bit big," she told him, not seeing he already knew.

"Yeah," he laughed, "Thanks."

"I like them though," she continued, reaching out to tug on his ear, "They suit you."

Nancy smiled seeing a tiny hint of pink appear on the Doctor's cheeks at the compliment before she turned to go, "Goodnight."

"Nancy," Angel suddenly turned to her, making her pause, "There's something that's been following you, only following the children when you're with them, isn't there? It looks like an ordinary little boy but you know it isn't. And you know that it began a month ago, right?"

Nancy turned back to them.

"The thing we're looking for," the Doctor began, "The thing that fell from the sky, _that's_ when it landed. And you know what we're talking about, don't you?"

"There was a bomb," she nodded slowly, "A bomb that _wasn't_ a bomb. Fell the other end of Limehouse Green Station."

"Take us there."

"There's soldiers guarding it," she sighed, "Barbed wire...you'll never get through."

"Try me!"

"You sure you wanna know what's going on in there?"

"I really wanna know."

"Me too," Angel agreed.

She shook her head, "Then there's someone you need to talk to first."

"And who might that be?" he asked.

"The doctor," she replied, turning to walk away.

The Doctor seemed confused by that.

"There's another one of you?" Angel asked him quietly, befuddled.

"I think she's talking about a human doctor," he said.

"Oh…" she nodded, feeling a bit silly. Clearly there was only _one_ Doctor, he was just unique like that, far too special to have a copy.

~8~

Rose and Jack sat atop his spaceship, drinking their champagne, when Rose stood up, "You know, it's getting a bit late. I should really be getting back."

"We're discussing business," he argued lightly.

" _This_ isn't business. This is _champagne_."

"I try never to discuss business with a clear head," he replied, standing and walking towards her, "Are you travelling alone? Are you authorized to negotiate with me?"

"What would we be negotiating?"

"I have something for the Time Agency. Something they'd like to buy. Are you in power to make payment?"

"Well, I...I should talk to my...companions," she said after a moment.

"Companions?"

"Yeah, I should really be getting back to them," she glanced around, "Do you have the time?" Jack pulled the remote from his pocket and flicked a switch, lighting up Big Ben beside them, making it chime, "Ok, that was flash," she laughed, "Th…that was on the flash side."

He moved closer to her, placing his hands on her waist, "So...when you say 'companions,' just how disappointed should I be?"

"Ok...we're standing in midair..."

"Mhmm."

"On a spaceship...during a German air raid...do you really think _now's_ a good time to be coming on to me..." her voice faltered as Jack raised her hands and placed his lips upon them. But on her words he pulled his lips away and patted her hands.

"Perhaps not," he turned and walked away.

"Well, it was just a _suggestion_ ," she called quickly, stepping towards him.

He turned back to her suddenly, "Do you like Glenn Miller?" he pointed is remote over his shoulder and 'Moonlight Serenade' began to play. He slowly walked back to her, pulling her into his arms as they began to dance slowly, "It's 1941. The _height_ of the London Blitz. The height of the German Bombing Campaign. And something else has fallen on London, a fully equipped Chula Warship. The last one in existence..." Rose's eyelids fluttered closed as she rested her head on his shoulder, "...armed to the teeth," he drew back slightly to look at her properly, "And _I_ know where it is. Because I parked it," she laughed, "If the Agency can name the right price, I can get it for you. But in two hours, a German bomb is gonna fall on it and destroy it forever," he looked at her, much more serious, "That's the deadline. That's the deal. And now, shall we discuss payment?"

"Do you know what I think?" she mumbled.

"What?"

"I think you were talking just there..." she said, dreamily.

"Two hours, the bomb falls," he continued, serious, "There'll be _nothing_ left but dust and a crater."

"Promises, promises..." she waved him off.

"Are you _listening_ to _any_ of this?" he shook her just a bit.

"You used to be a Time Agent, now you're some kind of free lancer," she said, pulling herself together.

"Well, that's a little harsh," he pulled her closer, "I like to think of myself as a criminal."

She laughed, "I _bet_ you do!"

"So, these companions of yours. Do _they_ handle the business?"

"Well, I delegate a lot of that, yeah."

"Well, maybe we should go find them."

"And how're you gonna do that?"

"Easy. I'll do a scan for alien tech," he turned and began to do just that with the device on his wrist.

"Finally," she breathed, delighted, "A PROFESSIONAL."

* * *

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We're starting to see a little hint of Angel's feelings for the Doctor come out, there'll definitely be more and more from here on out as I really start to build up the pre-relationship. Just wait till Boom Town, that's all I have to say. While Angel seems to be slightly aware of how she feels about the Doctor, he won't fully realize it till then, when Mickey Smith, a man who will be very important to Angel, is introduced to her. I'm really going to try and build up a believable relationship, I definitely do NOT want the Doctor's relationship with her to seem like he only likes her because she's the last Time Lady, I feel like that's a cop out way to go.
> 
> Actually...tiny spoiler. Angel will have similar fears that she will bring up in a particular episode of Series 2. Which one I won't say, but it'll definitely show more of the Doctor's thoughts on it :)
> 
> As for Angie...well, Jack will answer that question before the first series is over :)


	12. The Empty Child: Time Lords and Agents

The Doctor and Angel stood on the steps of a small path overlooking the bombsite. He peered through his own binoculars at the site, handing them over to Angel to take a glimpse as well.

"The bomb's under that tarpaulin," Nancy called from behind them, "They put the fence up over night. See that building? The hospital?"

The Angel glanced at the building, handing the binoculars back to the Doctor to see, "What about it?" she asked.

"That's where the doctor is. You should talk to him."

"For now, I'm more interested in getting in there," the Doctor nodded at the fencing.

"Talk to the doctor first."

"Why?"

"'Cos then maybe you won't wanna get inside," Nancy replied, turning to leave.

"Where're you going?" the Doctor asked, not even needing to look up.

"There was a lot of food in that house. I've got mouths to feed. Should be safe enough now."

"Who was it?" Angel asked softly, turning to the girl, "That you lost Nancy?"

"What?" she swallowed.

The Doctor lowered his binoculars to turn and look at her as well.

"You look after all those kids because you lost someone," she tilted her head, as though looking through Nancy's soul, "Someone you loved very much..." she blinked, "You blame yourself and this is your way of making up for it."

She could empathize entirely.

Her sister...she had _felt_ it. Such a _terrible_ pit in her stomach that day of the War. Hadn't the faintest idea what would come of it, but that it would be horrible. She _should_ have stayed at her sister's side, for how much her sister looked after her, SHE was still the OLDER sister, it was her _job_ to look out for her baby sister...and she'd failed. She'd failed and her sister had died. If she'd just been quicker, understood her feelings, perhaps her sister would still be alive.

It was, she supposed, one of the reasons why she was so forgiving of Rose after the Reaper incident. Her sister, for most of her regenerations, had black hair or dark hair. But her last regeneration, the one she often remembered of her sister, she'd been blonde. She'd seen her sister fighting, suffering, dying as a blonde...to see Rose, with her blonde hair again, her sass and spirit...it reminded her _so much_ of her sister that it almost hurt. Given the fact she was quite a few centuries older than Rose definitely made Rose feel more and more like a baby sister to her as their adventures went on. She was so young, so fragile and naive in her humanity that she felt an almost instant need to protect Rose and look after her. And Rose, she'd said it before, she was starting to think of HER as a sister as well.

It was always hard to stay angry at family.

Nancy hesitated before explaining, "My little brother. Jamie. One night I went out looking for food. Same night that thing fell. I _told_ him not to follow me, told him it was dangerous, but he just...he just didn't like being on his own."

"What happened?" the Doctor frowned.

"In the middle of an air raid?" she asked, as though it should be obvious, "What do you THINK happened?"

The Doctor nodded, "Amazing."

"What is?" Nancy frowned.

"1941," he replied, looking out at planes, off bombing in the distance, a barrage balloon hovering over them, "Right now, not very far from here, a German war machine is rolling up the map of Europe. Country after country, falling like dominoes. Nothing can stop it. _Nothing_. Until one, tiny, damp little island says 'no.' 'No. Not here.' A mouse in front of a lion," he looked at Nancy, "You're amazing, the lot of you. Dunno what you do to Hitler, but you frighten the hell out of me. Off you go then...do what you've gotta do. Save the world," he turned and made his way down the steps with Angel as Nancy turned to walk away.

~8~

The Doctor and Angel approached the gate of Albion Hospital, the Doctor quickly using the sonic on the padlock keeping them out. They entered the darkened building, walking around till they reached a large room where rows of people were laying down on the beds, all with gasmasks on, looking for all the world as though they were dead.

"Doctor," Angel whispered from beside him, he looked over to see her frowning and looking around disturbed, "Can we leave? Please? I don't like this room."

He nodded, taking her hand before they turned and walked back into the lit corridor.

They wandered till they reached a larger room, lighter than the other but still there were more gasmasked people on the rows of beds. They turned quickly at a noise to see and old man in a white doctor's coat step into the room.

"You'll find them everywhere," he warned them, "Every bed in every ward. Hundreds of them."

"Yes, we saw," the Doctor remarked, squeezing Angel's hand as he felt her shifting beside him, uncomfortable, "Why are they still wearing gasmasks?"

"They're not. Who are you?"

"We're uh..." he looked for a response.

"Are you the doctor?" Angel cut in, "The _human_ doctor, not the _Doctor_ doctor."

The old man blinked at that before shaking his head, assuming it was just slang of the times, "Dr. Constantine. And you are?"

"Nancy sent us," the Doctor supplied instead.

"Nancy?" his eyes widened, "That means you must've been asking about the bomb."

"Yes."

"What do you know about it?"

"Nothing. Why we were asking. What do _you_ know?"

"Only what it's done," he sighed.

"Were these people caught up in the blast?" Angel asked, looking around.

"None of them were," he gave a laugh only for a coughing fit to replace it. He sat down on the chair of the desk he'd walked to, the duo taking a few steps towards him in concern.

"You're very sick," the Doctor frowned.

"You're dying," Angel said softly.

He nodded, "I just haven't been able to find the time. Are you doctors?"

"I have my moments," the Doctor shrugged as Angel shook her head.

"Have you examined any of them yet?" he turned to the Doctor.

"No."

"Don't touch the flesh."

"Which one?" the Doctor looked around.

"ANYone."

The Doctor raised his eyebrows at that before glancing at Angel who could only shrug. He turned and pulled out the sonic, approaching the nearest bed. He ran it over the mask-covered face.

"Conclusions?"

"Massive head trauma, mostly to the left side..." the Doctor stated, running the screwdriver over the patient, "Partial collapse of the chest cavity, mostly to the right. There's some scarring on the back of the hand and the gasmask seems to be fused to the flesh but I can't see any burns."

"Examine another one."

The Doctor moved to another body, confused at the request, but scanned it anyway. Only to see the gasmask fused to the face while there was the same scar on the back of the hand. He turned his sonic off and looked at Constantine, "This isn't possible."

"Examine another."

The Doctor rushed across to third bed, doing it again, only to get the same results, "This isn't possible!"

"No," Constantine nodded.

"They've all got the same injuries!" he said to Angel, explaining his findings.

"Yes."

"Exactly the same?" Angel frowned, even she knew that wasn't normal.

"Yes."

"Identical, all of them," the Doctor shook his head in confusion, "Right down to the scar on the back of the hand," neither of them noticed Constantine look at his hand, a faint scar on it as well, "How did this happen? How did it start?"

"When that bomb dropped, there was just one victim," Constantine sighed.

"Dead?" Angel asked.

"At first," he nodded, "His injuries were truly dreadful. By the following morning, every doctor and nurse who had treated him, who had _touched_ him, had those _exact_ _same injuries_. By the morning after that, every patient in the same ward had the exact same injuries. Within a week, the entire hospital. Physical injuries...as plague. Can you explain that? What would you say was the cause of death?"

"The head trauma," the Doctor replied.

"No."

"Asphyxiation?"

"No."

"The collapse of the chest cavity…"

"No."

"Alright. What _was_ the cause of death?"

"There _wasn't_ one," Constantine explained as they looked at him, confused.

Angel blinked, looking at the beds, "Are they dead?"

Constantine merely rapped his cane on a metal bin and all the men and women lying on the beds sat straight up. The Doctor looked at them, alarmed, instinctively pulling Angel behind him as though to protect her from the army that surrounded them.

"It's alright," Constantine calmed them, "They're harmless. They just...sort of, sit there. No heartbeat, no life signs of any kind. They just...don't die."

"And they've just been _left_ here?" the Doctor shook his head, "Nobody's DOING anything?"

"I try and make them comfortable, what else is there?" Constantine murmured, watching the patients return to their restful positions.

"It's just you?" Angel looked at him sadly, "You're the last one left?"

"Before this war began, I was a father and a grandfather. Now I am neither. But I am _still_ a _doctor_."

"Yeah," the Doctor nodded solemnly, "Know the feeling."

Angel squeezed his hand in comfort, making him look at her as she offered him a small smile. He gave her one in return, he was still a doctor, having lost all he had, all that was left was who he was. He couldn't help but shake his head a bit, he was starting to think Angel really _was_ an angel too. Already, just having her around had made the pain a little more bearable, had made it a little easier. He'd lived for _so long_ with such _guilt_ over what had happened, what he'd done because of the War...to have one of his people there, _still_ choosing to _stay_ with him, despite knowing what he'd done, what had happened as a result, to still WANT to be with him and look at him as though he were still a _good man_...it meant more to him than anyone, even Angel, would _ever_ know.

She was...different than anyone he'd ever met. The way she acted, the things she said, the way she did things, they way she just...understood. He couldn't put his finger on it, but there was just... _something_...about her that pulled his attention in. He didn't know what it was, but he rather enjoyed the feeling. It had been a _long time_ since anything had captivated his attention as wholly as Angel seemed able to do. Perhaps it was the things she said, how such a passing remark could have such an impact later on. It made him truly LISTEN to what she said, something, he admitted, he hadn't always done in the past, to human, aliens, and Time Lord alike. But when Angel spoke, he HEARD her. And the little looks on her face when he just KNEW she'd sensed something...

Well, he knew far more expressions than just _that_ one. He found himself watching her from time to time, at the most random of moments. Whether she was sitting with Rose on the captain's chair talking about something humans did or said that she didn't understand, or confidently working away at the TARDIS with this adorable expression of deep concentration mixed with contentment on her face, or just walking down a lane on an adventure smiling at the world and taking in its beauty...he noticed a lot of little things about her.

She fascinated him.

"I suspect the plan is to blow up the hospital and blame it on a German bomb," Constantine continued, pulling him from his thoughts.

The Doctor gestured at the beds, "Probably too late."

"No," the man shook his head, "They are isolated cases, but...isolated cases breaking out all over London..." he coughed again, straining to speak as they walked towards him, "Stay back, stay back," he warned, coughing, "Listen to me...top floor. Room 802, that's where they took the first victim, the one from the crash site. And you must find Nancy again."

"Nancy?"

"It was her brother. She knows more than she's saying. She won't tell me, but she mi…mi…" he choked on his words, grabbing at his neck, trying to breathe, "M...mu...mee..." he forced out, "Are...you...my...mum-my?"

They watched in horror, Angel turning to bury her face in the Doctor's shoulder, as a gasmask began to stick itself out of Constantine's mouth, his eyes growing wider and wider till they morphed into those of a gasmask as it literally became his face. He slumped in his chair.

"Hello?" a man called from the hall.

"Hello?" a woman, Rose, shouted.

They quickly turned and left the ward, emerging into the corridor as Rose and Jack came out the other way.

"Good evening!" Jack greeted, "Hope I'm not interrupting, Jack Harkness," he reached out and grabbed the Doctor's hand to shake it, "I've been hearing all about you both on the way over," he winked at Angel as he shook her hand as well.

Angel just frowned and eyed him a bit, not quite sure why he'd winked at her. As far as she knew, the typical human greeting was either a hug, for women, or a handshake, for men...who sometimes did a manly handshake-hug which she still wasn't quite sure what the difference was between that and just a simple old hug.

She rather liked hugs.

Especially the Doctor's.

It might have been because he was just so big, muscular and all, but whenever he hugged her, she felt...safe. Like nothing would hurt her, like he wouldn't LET anything hurt her. And after decades trapped with a Dalek, it was a welcome feeling.

It was _nice_.

"He knows," Rose turned to them, "I had to tell him about us being _Time Agents_."

The Doctor nodded slowly, catching on.

But Angel wasn't quite so fast, "But we're Time L..."

The Doctor quickly cut in, "Agents, yup, Time Agents, that's us," he winked at Angel and she smiled despite her confusion as to why he was lying to Jack.

She liked his winks too.

"And it's a real pleasure to meet you, Mr. Spock," Jack patted the Doctor on the shoulder, "Miss Kirk."

"Nice to meet you?" Angel asked, confused again as Jack quickly reached out and placed a kiss on her hand before walking past them. She squirmed just a little, subtly moving to wipe the back of her hand on her duster, not noticing Rose give a small smile at that.

"Mr. Spock?" the Doctor turned to Rose.

"Who's Miss Kirk?" Angel shook her head, now officially _completely_ lost and considering just giving up on trying to understand the humans at all.

"What was I supposed to say?" Rose rolled her eyes, "Neither of you have names!"

"She does," the Doctor pointed at Angel, "Isn't Angel a human name?"

"Yeah. But YOU don't. Don't you ever get tired of 'Doctor?' Doctor who?"

Angel smiled, "Careful, that could be a dangerous question."

"Nine centuries in," the Doctor laughed, "I'm coping. Where've you been? We're in the middle of a London Blitz, it's not a good time for a stroll."

"Who's strolling?" Rose walked past them with a smirk, leaving them to follow, "I went by barrage balloon. Only way to see an air raid."

"What?!"

"Well I _did_ tell you to hold on," Angel mused.

"Listen, what's a Chula warship?" Rose cut in.

The Doctor stopped, "Chula?"

~8~

Nancy quickly entered the house from before, putting a cloth over some of the food on the table to collect it, when the radio sprang to life, the child's voice transmitting through it, "Please, mummy. Please let me in," she spun around to face it, "I'm scared of the bombs mummy. Please mummy..." there was a crash in the hallway, making her turn towards it as the shadow of the child appeared on the wall, "Mummy...mum-my..."

Nancy looked around desperately before crawling under the table to hide.

~8~

Jack scanned one of the bodies lying in the room with Constantine, "This just _isn't_ possible. How could this _happen_?"

"What kind of Chula ship landed here?" the Doctor asked.

"What?" Jack glanced over.

"He said it was a warship," Rose commented, "He stole it. Parked it somewhere out there, somewhere a bomb's gonna fall on it, unless WE make him an offer."

"What kind of warship?" the Doctor turned to him.

"Does it matter?" he asked, agitated, "It's got nothing to do with this!"

"This started _at_ the bombsite!" the Doctor shouted angrily, "It's got EVERYTHING to do with it. What _kind_ of warship?"

"An ambulance!" Jack turned on his wrist device, "Look," a hologram of the 'warship' appeared above it, "That's what you chased through the Time Vortex. It's space junk. I wanted to kid you it was valuable. It's _empty_. I made _sure_ of it. Nothing but a shell. I threw it at you. Saw your time travel vehicle, love the retro look, by the way, nice panels, threw you the bait…"

"Bait?" Rose glanced up at him.

"I wanted to sell it to you and then destroy it before you found out it was junk."

"You said it was a _war_ ship!"

"They have ambulances in wars," he countered, turning away from them, annoyed, "It was a _con_. I was conning you, that's what I am, I'm a conman. I _thought_ you were Time Agents but you're not, are you?"

"Just a couple more free-lancers."

"Ah...should've known. The way you guys are blending in with the local color, I mean, Flag Girl was bad enough, but a U-Boat Captain and a Hippie?" the trio looked uncomfortably down at their clothing, Angel tugging at her duster as she frowned, thoughtful too though, "Anyway...whatever's happening here has got NOTHING to do with that ship."

Rose looked around at the people on the beds, "What IS happening here, Doctor?"

"Human DNA's being rewritten...by an _idiot_ ," the Doctor replied.

"What d'you mean?"

"I dunno, some kind of virus. It's converting human beings into these things," he gestured at the patients, "But why? What's the point?"

~8~

"Mummy?" the child called, entering the dining room, "Where's my mummy? Mummy?"

An apple fell out of Nancy's bag and rolled out from under the table, making her wince and silently curse herself. The child looked at it and walked over to it, bending down to pick it up as Nancy tried to make a run for it. But the child spun around and pointed a finger at the door, slamming it shut, locking it. Nancy rattled the handle fruitlessly as the child looked at her, still pointing.

"Are you my mummy?"

~8~

Rose bent over one of the bodies, examining it, when it suddenly sat up. All the others doing so as well.

Rose jumped backwards, "What's happening?" she gasped as the people began to get out of bed, crying for their mummy.

"I don't know," the Doctor replied, eyeing them warily, taking Angel's hand.

~8~

Nancy backed away from the child.

"Mummy?"

"It's me," she argued, "Nancy!"

~8~

The gasmasked people began to close in on the group.

"Don't let them touch you," Angel called to the humans.

"What happens if they touch us?" Rose looked at her.

"You're looking at it," the Doctor stated.

The gang of gasmasked people, still chanting for mummy, backed them into a wall.

~8~

"Are you my mummy?" the child asked.

"It's _Nancy_. Your _sister_."

~8~

The patients in the ward closed in.

~8~

"You're _dead_ , Jamie," she told the boy, "You're dead!" she gasped as she backed into the curtain of the window.

"Mum-my...mum-my..."

~8~

They were surrounded now, the gasmasked people still calling for mummy, blocking them in…

And there was no way out…

To be continued…

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next we get The Doctor Dances...have to say, loved those chapters. Angel's got some more 'I don't understand humans' lines that I hope will have you laughing :)


	13. The Doctor Dances: Go To Your Room!

The Doctor moved to stand before the gasmasked people, narrowing his eyes, "Go to your room," he commanded, as though at a disobeying child.

The patients stopped.

~8~

Jamie hesitated.

~8~

"Go to your room!" the Doctor repeated as the patients tilted their head to the side.

~8~

Jamie tilted his head to the side.

~8~

"I mean it!" the Doctor shouted, "I am very, _very_ angry with you. I am very, VERY cross! Go. To. Your. ROOM!" he pointed sternly in no particular direction and, miraculously, all the patients turned away and shuffled off, back to their beds.

~8~

Jamie looked down and turned to shuffle out of the room.

~8~

The Doctor grinned, "I'm _really_ glad that worked."

Angel nodded, "Those would've been _the_ WORST last words in history."

He laughed a bit at that.

~8~

Nancy watched from the window as Jamie walked alone through the dark night, "Jamie..." she breathed, sinking to the ground with her back against the wall as she sobbed.

~8~

Rose sat by one of the beds, looking at the gasmasked people while Jack settled down in a chair.

"Why are they all wearing gasmasks?" Rose asked.

"They're not," Jack replied, "Those masks are flesh and bone."

"How was your con supposed to work?" the Doctor turned to him from where he was leaning against the wall with Angel standing beside him, looking out the window at the bombing outside with a frown.

"Simple enough, really. Find some harmless piece of space junk, let the nearest Time Agent track it back to Earth. Convince him it's valuable, name a price. When he's put 50 percent up front…oops! A German bomb falls on it, destroys it forever. He never gets to see what he's paid for. Never knows he's been had. I buy him a drink with his own money, and we discuss dumb luck. The perfect self-cleaning con."

"Yeah," the Doctor remarked sarcastically, "Perfect."

"The London Blitz is great for self-cleaners. Pompeii's nice if you want to make a vacation of it though, but you've got to set your alarm for Volcano Day," he laughed at his little quip but the Doctor just looked at him, unimpressed, his laugher faded away, "Getting a hint of disapproval."

"Take a look around the room," the Doctor gestured, " _This_ is what your 'harmless piece of space junk' did."

"It was a burnt out medical transporter, it was _empty_."

"Are you sure?" Angel asked, turning around to face Jack, as the Doctor looked at the man darkly.

"There was _nothing_ in it."

"Nothing that you _saw_."

"No!"

The Doctor seemed to realize that she hadn't been asking a question but implying something else entirely, that there was _something_ in there that _couldn't_ be _seen_ with the naked eye, perhaps a virus or something that had escaped. He took her hand and led her off, calling, "Rose," over his shoulder.

"We getting out of here?" Rose asked.

"We're going upstairs," Angel corrected.

Rose got up and followed after them, Jack getting up as well, "I even programmed the flight computer so it wouldn't land on anything living," he added, "I harmed no one! I don't know what's happening here, but believe me I had _nothing_ to do with it."

"I'll tell you what's happening," the Doctor turned to face him, "You forgot to set your alarm clock. It's Volcano Day."

A siren sounded outside.

"What's that?" Rose looked over.

"The all-clear," Jack answered.

"I wish," the Doctor muttered before leaving the ward with Angel, Jack and Rose following after them.

~8~

Nancy looked up at the sound of the sirens and got up to leave the dining room. She'd _just_ stepped into the hallway when a gasmasked child jumped out in front of her. She screamed and stumbled back when the boy took _off_ his mask, "I thought you were Jamie!" she gasped, turning to leave the house through the back door, the boy following her.

"Dad!" he shouted, "Dad!"

The boy's parents suddenly appeared, the father grabbing Nancy's arm and shoving her back into the house.

"Get your hands off me!" she cried.

"Oi!" the boy's mother turned to him, "You! Get in! Get in!"

~8~

Rose and Jack dashed down a hall, looking for the Doctor.

"Mr. Spock?" Jack yelled, "Miss Kirk?"

"Doctor?" Rose shouted, "Angel!"

They rushed past a flight of stairs when the Doctor and Angel's heads popped around the banister up one floor, "Have you got a blaster?" the Doctor asked loudly.

The duo skid to a halt and backtracked, "Sure!" Jack shouted as they ran up the stairs, only to find themselves standing before a door.

"When the ambulance hit London, a little boy was hurt," Angel explained to the man, "This is his room."

"What happened?" Rose frowned.

"Let's find out," the Doctor turned to Jack, "Get it open."

Jack grinned and pointed his blaster at the door, the Doctor, Angel, and Rose standing back.

"What's wrong with your sonic screwdriver?" Rose asked the Doctor quietly.

"Nothing," the Doctor replied, watching as Jack's blaster made a square hole where the lock was, opening the door with a squeak, "Sonic blaster, 51st century. Weapon Factories of Villengard?"

"You've been to the factories?" Jack looked up, surprised.

The Doctor just took the blaster from him for a quick look, "Once."

"Well, they're gone now. Destroyed. The main reactor went critical. Vaporized the lot."

The Doctor handed it back, "Like I said, once. There's a banana grove there now. I like bananas. Bananas are good."

"I've never had a banana before," Angel commented off-handedly. They were not a fruit indigenous to Gallifrey. Not that she would really eat all that much to begin with. You got sort of...timeless...in a TARDIS. She'd get so lost in her work, so focused on getting a TARDIS fixed that she'd lose all sense of time, not even realize she'd gone quite a while without eating a proper meal...more often then not her sister would have to find her and drag her out of some TARDIS or another for dinner. That was one fond memory of hers, before her sister had left, they always had dinner together, the two of them and their father.

The Doctor turned to her with a grin, "I'll get you one when this is over," he said as they turned to walk into the room, "They're really amazing fruits. And the things humans do with them. There's bananas in ice cream and they've got banana daiquiris…"

Rose shook her head as the Doctor explained all the brilliant uses for bananas to Angel as they walked in before looking at the perfectly square hole the blaster had made, "Nice blast pattern."

"Digital," Jack shrugged.

"Squareness gun?"

"Yeah."

"I like it," she commented, heading into the room as well. Jack laughed and followed her.

The Doctor flipped on a light to reveal the room through a glass which looked torn apart. The window was shattered and there was a mess of papers and toys all over the floor, it was almost destroyed.

"What d'you think?" the Doctor asked to no one in particular.

Angel shuddered, just the _feel_ of the room overwhelming her. She looked over at a small recorder on a desk just before the main room and walked over to it, gently placing her hands on it as she looked down.

"SOMETHING got out of here..." Jack commented.

"Yeah," the Doctor agreed, "And?"

"Something powerful. Angry."

"Powerful and angry."

Jack moved into the main room, stepping past the observation window and into the actual room where the floors and walls were _covered_ with a child's drawings, a few toys here and there, with a little bed in the corner, "You said it was a little boy?" he glacned back at Angel, who was looking down, "I suppose this explains 'mummy.'"

"How could a _child_ do this?" Rose asked.

Angel hit a switch, turning on the tape recorder.

 _"Do you know where you are?"_ Dr. Constantine's voice began to play.

 _"Are you my mummy?"_ the child spoke.

_"Are you aware of what's around you? Can you...see?"_

_"Are you my mummy?"_

_"What do you want? Do you know…"_

_"I want my mummy. Are you my mummy? I want my mummy! Are you my mummy?"_

They looked up at the drawings on the wall, every single one of the child's mother, a woman with brown hair.

_"Are you my mummy? Mummy? Mummy?"_

"I've heard this voice before," Rose remarked.

"Us too," the Doctor nodded, standing beside Angel, looking at the tape.

_"Mummy?"_

"Always, 'are you my mummy?'" Rose added, "Like he doesn't know."

_"Mummy?"_

"Why doesn't he know?"

_"Are you there, mummy? Mummy?"_

Angel closed her eyes, her hearts clenching in pain. Children, crying out, scared, so many terrible memories from the War. It wasn't just parents screaming for their lost children, but children, so young, crying for their lost parents. So many had been orphaned...so many lost...

She looked over, her eyes opening, when she felt someone take her hand, the Doctor. He turned her hand gently, lacing their fingers together as he squeezed her hand.

He was remembering the same.

~8~

Nancy sat in the dining room as the father entered, shutting the door behind him, leaning on the table to look at her, "The police are on their way," he informed her, "I PAY for the food on this table. The sweat on my brow, that food is. The sweat on my brow. Anything else you'd like? I've got a whole house here, anything else you'd like to help yourself to?"

"Yeah," she looked up at him, "I'd like some wire cutters, please," he looked unpleasantly surprised at her request, "Something that can cut through barbed wire. Oh, and a torch. Don't look like that, Mr. Lloyd. I _know_ you've got plenty of tools in here. I've been watching this house for _ages_. And I'd like another look round your kitchen cupboards. I was in a hurry the first time. I wanna see if there's anything I missed."

"The food on this table…"

"It's an _awful lot_ of food, isn't it Mr. Lloyd?" she looked at him as his mouth fell open and snapped shut, "A lot more than on anyone _else's_ table. Half this street thinks your missus must be messing about with Mr. Avistock, the butcher. But she's not, is she? _You_ are," he looked very uncomfortable, starting to sweat as Nancy stood up, "Wire cutters. Torch. Food. And I'd like to use your bathroom before I leave, please. Oh, look... _there's_ the sweat on your brow," he agitatedly wiped the sweat off his forehead with the back of his hand as Nancy smirked and walked over to the door, stepping out.

~8~

 _"Mummy?"_ the recording continued, _"Please, mummy? Mummy?"_

Rose and Jack watched, concerned, as the Doctor now paced around inside the child's bedroom.

"Doctor?" Rose eyed him.

"Can you sense it?" he looked at them, breathing heavily.

"Sense what?" Jack frowned.

"Coming out of the walls, can you feel it?"

_"Mummy?"_

"Yes," Angel's voice cracked as she whispered. They looked over to see her standing by the recording as she had been since they arrived in the room, her eyes closed once more, "He's _so_ sad…and he's so _afraid_. So _terribly_ afraid."

The Doctor nodded, turning his gaze to Rose and Jack, "Funny little human brains, how do you get around in those things?"

"When he's stressed, he likes to insult species," Rose told Jack with a roll of her eyes.

The Doctor just resumed pacing, "Rose, I'm thinking."

"Cuts himself shaving, does half an hour in life forms he's cleverer than..."

"There are these children living rough around the bomb site. They come out during air raids looking for food..."

_"Mummy, please?"_

"Suppose they were there when this thing, whatever it was, landed?" the Doctor looked over at Angel, feeling she would be the best person to discuss his thoughts with, she could easily keep up. She claimed, during their late night talks of Gallifrey, that she was just an average student, knew the basics, did better in history and space/time than science or alien cultures or any other subjects offered at the Academy, but he knew that her intuitiveness, her sensations and thoughts on certain things, were more than enough to make her extraordinarily fantastic in his eyes.

"It was a med-ship," Jack explained again, "It was _harmless_."

"Yes, you keep saying," the Doctor turned to him, "'Harmless.' Suppose one of them was affected, altered?"

"Altered how?" Rose frowned.

"I'm here!" the child shouted.

Angel looked down, her eyes widening at the sight of the tape ending.

"It's afraid," the Doctor continued, "Angel was right, it's terribly afraid, and powerful. It doesn't know it yet, but it will do," he laughed, looking over at Angel, seeing the same realization in her eyes as in his mind, "It's got the power of a god, and I just sent it to its room."

There was a loud crackling noise filling the room now.

"Doctor..." Rose breathed, scared.

"I'm here," the child said, "Can't you see me?"

"What's that noise?" Rose asked, hearing a clicking.

The Doctor's smile faded.

"The tape ended," Angel said, "About 30 seconds ago."

"I'm here, now. Can't you see me?"

"I sent it to its room," the Doctor reminded them, "THIS is its room."

Angel turned quickly to see the child in the doorway, she moved back into the room with the Doctor, Rose, and Jack as the child advanced. The Doctor reached out, taking her hand, pulling her the rest of the way.

"Are you my mummy?" the child asked, tilting his head, considering Rose, "Mummy?"

"Doctor?" Rose looked at him, tensing.

"Ok..." Jack said calmly, moving forward, "On my signal...make for the door. NOW!" he whipped a banana out of his coat pocket and pointed it at the child like it was his blaster.

The Doctor laughed behind him, holding up the sonic blaster, before turning and using it on the wall, making a large square hole, "Go!" he shouted, "Now! Don't drop the banana!"

"Why not?!" Jack called, making his way through the hole after the girls.

"Good source of potassium!" the Doctor replied as they found themselves in a hallway. The child walking towards them from inside the room.

Jack ran forward and grabbed the sonic blaster back, "Give me that!"

"Are you my mummy?" the child called.

Jack pointed the blaster at the wall, reversing the damage, replacing the square, stopping the child, "Digital rewind," he tossed the banana back to the Doctor, "Nice switch."

"It's from the Groves of Villengard," the Doctor remarked, "I thought it was appropriate."

"There's really a banana grove in the heart of Villengard and you did that?"

"Bananas are good," he said simply, before tossing it to Angel, "Here," she caught it, "Might want to save it for later though..."

The child started to hit the wall from the other side, cracks forming in it as a result.

"Doctor!" Rose pointed.

"Come on!" the Doctor shouted, leading them down the hall, down a short flight of stairs and to another corridor only to see patients bursting out of the ward, wanting their mummy. They hastily turned around, rushing back, finding more patients coming from that direction as well. They ended up right back at the wall, the child breaking through it, "It's keeping us here so it can get at us."

Jack pointed the blaster in each direction for a moment, "It's controlling them?"

"It IS them," Angel replied, "It's every living thing in this hospital."

"Ok. This can function as a sonic blaster, a sonic cannon, and a triple enfolded sonic disrupter. Doc, Angie, what you got?"

"I have a banana," Angel held it up, ready to help.

"Ok…" Jack nodded, no help there, "Doctor?"

The Doctor grabbed the sonic from his pocket as he had his back to Jack, "A sonic, er...oh, never mind."

"What?"

The Doctor just turned to face the second group closing in on them, switching the sonic on, "It's sonic, ok? Let's leave it at that."

"Disrupter? Cannon? What?"

"It's sonic! Totally sonic! I am soniced up!"

"A sonic WHAT?!"

"SCREWDRIVER!"

Jack turned to him as the child finally managed to punch through the wall and climb through the hole he'd made.

Rose grabbed onto Jack's wrist, making him point the sonic down at the floor, "Going down!" she cried, blasting a hole in the floor. They fell down in a messy heap on the floor of the ward below. Jack scrambled to his feet and blasted the ceiling again, erasing the hole, "Doctor, are you ok?"

"Could've used a warning..." he muttered.

"Ugh, the gratitude," she rolled her eyes before looking over, "And Angel? How 'bout you?"

Angel scrunched her eyes closed in pain, "Not so much…"

The Doctor quickly knelt by her side, scanning the ankle she was gripping quickly with the sonic, "Twisted," he muttered, checking the results as Jack looked over.

"Who has a sonic screwdriver?" Jack remarked.

"I do!" the Doctor shouted, before turning gently to Angel, his entire demenor shifting from annoyed with Jack to concerned for her in a split second, "Can you stand?"

"I dunno," she murmured, standing up a bit with the Doctor's help. She tried to put some weight on her right foot, only to pull it back up with a wince and hiss of pain.

The Doctor quickly wrapped his arm around her waist, supporting her.

"Light!" Rose shouted, looking around, trying to find a switch to help the Doctor see better.

"Who looks at a screwdriver and thinks 'ooh, this could be a little more sonic?'" Jack continued.

"What, you've never been bored?" the Doctor looked at Jack, indignant.

"There's gotta be a light switch!" Rose muttered.

"Never had a long night? Never had a lot of cabinets to put up?"

Rose finally found a switch and got the lights on...only for all the patients lying in their beds to sit up and start calling mummy.

"Door," Jack nodded as they ran for the door, the Doctor helping Angel limp along as the patients got up, "Damn it!" Jack shouted as he tried to blast the locked door only for the blaster to stop working. He moved back as the Doctor handed Angel off to Rose and went to unlock the door with his sonic screwdriver, whacking the side of his blaster, annoyed, "It's the special features, they really drain the battery."

"The battery?!" Rose scoffed. The Doctor managed to get the door open, taking Angel back as they hurried through, "That's so LAME!"

The Doctor and Angel led them to a random door, ushering them in before shutting the door behind them, locking them in with the sonic and flashing the rest of the door to strengthen it.

"I was gonna send for another one, but SOMEBODY'S gonna blow up the factory," Jack commented as he ran to the window before glaring at the Doctor.

"Oh, I know, first day I met him, he blew my job up. That's practically how he communicates."

"Ok, that door should hold it for a bit," the Doctor said, leading Angel, who seemed to be able to put just a bit more weight on her foot, in, setting her gently in a wheelchair off to the side.

"The door?!" Jack scoffed, "The WALL didn't stop it!"

"Well, it's gotta FIND us first! Come on, we're not done yet! Assets, assets!"

"Well, Angel's got a banana, I've got a drained blaster, and, in a pinch, you could put up some shelves."

"Window…" the Doctor remarked, heading to one.

"Barred, sheer drop outside," Jack informed him, leaning against the wall by Angel, "Seven stories."

"And no other exits," Rose looked around.

"Well, the assets conversation went in a flash, didn't it?"

The Doctor turned and eyed him for a moment before turning to Rose, "So, where'd you pick this one up, then?"

"Doctor..." Rose warned.

"She was hanging from a barrage balloon," Jack smiled, "I had an invisible spaceship. I never stood a CHANCE."

Rose looked uncomfortable and embarrassed.

"Ok, one, we want to get out of here," the Doctor began to think, turning back to the window, "Two, we CAN'T get out of here. Have I missed anything?"

"Well, Jack's gone," Angel called out. The Doctor spun around to see Jack had indeed disappeared. He looked at Angel for an explanation, she could only shrug, "Emergency teleport?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Awww, Angel got hurt...good thing she has a Doctor around eh? :) As promised, we've answered the question of 'Angie' before the end of Series 1, good old Jack :) Of these three chapters for this episode, the next one is by far my favorite in terms of Angel's little remarks, but the third chapter will have a very sweet scene between the Doctor and Angel at the end :)


	14. The Doctor Dances: Great Looking Ones

Nancy entered a small house to see a few children crowded inside it, two girls, a young boy, and an older boy, Ernie, "Thought as much," she scoffed, "What are all of you doing here? Different house every night, I told ya!"

"We thought you were dead!" the younger boy shouted, "Or you'd run off."

"I didn't," Ernie replied, smiling at her, "I KNEW you'd come back for us," Nancy squatted down, emptying her bag of supplies on the floor as Ernie looked over at the young boy at a typewriter, "Found that old thing in the junk. Thinks he can write now..."

"I'm writing a letter to me dad," the boy explained.

"You don't even know where your dad IS. And how're you gonna send it?"

"I dunno, stick it in an envelope?"

"You can't even read or write."

"I don't need to. I've got a machine!"

"Will you stop making that noise?" Nancy shouted at the sound of the machine pinging, irritated and angry. There was a short silence as the boy looked crestfallen. Nancy sighed, "I'm sorry, Jim. On you go. You write a letter to your dad if you want to."

Jim continued typing as Ernie turned to Nancy, "I know we should've went somewhere else, but we need you, see. For the thinking."

"And what if I wasn't here?" she said, "What if one night, I didn't come back for you? There's a war on...people go out...they don't always come back. It happens. What would you do then?"

Ernie furrowed his brow, before snatching the wire cutters Nancy had just pulled out from her hands, "Are they wire cutters?!"

Nancy stood and took them back, "I need you to think about that. SOMEONE'S gotta look after this lot!"

"Why? Are you going somewhere?"

Nancy put the cutters in her bag, "The bomb site. The one at the railway station."

"Why?"

"The child. That's where he was killed. That's where it all started. And I'm gonna find out how."

"He'll get you! And then he'll come for us, he ALWAYS comes for us!"

"No, Ernie, he doesn't. He always comes after ME _._ There are things I haven't told ya...things I CAN'T tell ya. As long as you're with me...you're in danger. Even now, sitting here, you're in danger because of me."

" _You're_ the one that keeps us safe!"

"You think so, Ernie?" Nancy eyed them, "Then answer this...Jim is sitting there, right next to ya…" they looked over to see Jim _had_ moved from his spot by the machine, "So who's typing?" they looked over to see the typewriter continuing on its own, but no one was typing. The children all looked scared, when Nancy strode over and snatched the paper out, reading it.

"Is he coming?" Ernie asked urgently.

"Ernie...as long as you're with me...he's _always_ coming," she replied, turning to leave as she dropped the paper on the floor. She paused in the doorway, "Plenty of greens. And chew your food."

And with that, she left.

Ernie picked up the piece of paper, reading it. Underneath Jim's incoherent jumble of letters and numbers was the phrase 'ARE YOU MY MUMMY' repeated over and over.

~8~

Rose approached the Doctor who was kneeling before Angel, just checking her ankle once more, "Ok, so he's vanished into thin air. Why is it always the GREAT looking ones who do that?"

The Doctor peered up at her, giving her a look, "I'm making an effort not to be insulted."

"I mean...men."

"Ok. Thanks. That REALLY helped."

"I thought those sorts disappeared in TARDISes?" Angel asked, frowning in confusion.

Rose raised an eyebrow at the girl and her little slip, she just KNEW the girl fancied the Doctor. She cast a quick glance at the Doctor to see him look down, a faint blush on his face, as he gently massaged the girl's ankle. Rose couldn't help but smirk at bit at the man's reaction.

Suddenly an old radio beside them turned on, Jack calling out of it, "Rose? Doctor? Angel? Can you hear me?" the two of them hurried over, the Doctor picking it up to check it as Angel forced herself to hop over, "I'm back on my ship. Used the emergency teleport. Sorry I couldn't take you," the Doctor frowned, holding up some wires that were ripped out of the radio, "It's security keyed to my molecular structure. I'm working on it, hang in there."

"How're you speaking to us?" the Doctor shook his head.

"Om-Comm.. I can call anything with a speaker grille."

"Now there's a coincidence."

"What is?"

"The child can Om-Comm. too."

"It can?" Rose looked at him.

He nodded, "Anything with a speaker grille. Even the TARDIS phone."

"What, you mean the child can phone us?"

"And I can hear you," the child's voice came over the radio too, "Coming to find you. Coming to fiiiiind you."

"Doctor, can you hear that?" Jack called.

"Loud and clear," the Doctor replied.

"I'll try to block out the signal. Least I can do."

"Coming to find you mummy!" the child called.

"Remember this one, Rose?" Jack asked, they could practically hear the smirk in his voice, before Glenn Miller's 'Moonlight Serenade' began to play.

The Doctor looked at her questioningly, "Our song," she muttered, embarrassed.

The Doctor nodded and turned to head back to the window, when his eyes widened in shock, "What are you doing up?!"

Rose looked over to see Angel standing behind them, balancing on one foot.

"I just wanted to…" Angel began, pointing at the radio.

She was cut off suddenly by the Doctor scooping her up into his arms, "You're resting that foot _now_ ," he commanded her lightly, carrying her back over to the chair.

Rose watched the two of them with a small smile on her face. She had noticed, ever since the incident with trying to save her father and the Reapers, the two of them had grown much closer. And she really couldn't blame them, she had screwed up _royally_ then and just continued to make it _worse_ …by rights she was lucky to just be allowed to continue to travel with them and not be dropped off back home.

At first she had chalked his reaction up to them realizing how close they'd both come to being alone, the last of their kind once more, but she'd been thinking more recently, perhaps it ran just a bit _deeper_ than that.

It was the way the Doctor seemed to gravitate towards Angel, more often than not, when he reached out to grab a hand, it was the Time Lady's and not her own. She'd walked in on them a few times, early in the morning, clearly talking and reminiscing about their homes and stories of friends and family. It was something she could _never_ share with the Doctor or come close to understanding, the Time War, his loss. But Angel could, she'd experienced it, she'd lived it, she'd lost it all as well.

She could see it as she watched them even now, they were slowly but surely healing each other.

~8~

Nancy approached the bomb site, a sign reading 'KEEP OUT. RESTRICTED AREA.' posted on the fence around it. She hurried stealthily out of sight to where a hole in the fence had been mended quickly with barbed wire and set to work, cutting them loose.

~8~

Rose shuffled around the room, looking at random odds and ends, bored, as Glenn Miller continued to play. She looked up at the Doctor as he stood by the window, sonicing it, as Angel curled up in the chair, her leg dangling off the side of the arm as she watched the Doctor, bored as well.

"What you doing?" she asked the man.

"Trying to set up a resonation pattern in the concrete," he replied, focused on the wall, "Loosen the bars."

"You don't think he's coming back, do ya?"

"Wouldn't bet my life."

"Why don't you trust him?"

"Why do you?"

"Saved my life. Bloke-wise, that's up there with flossing."

"I _did_ tell you to hold on tight," Angel commented, more sure of herself this time that what she'd said had been a 'feeling.' Now if she could just _realize_ it _at_ the time...

Rose sighed, "I trust him 'cos he's like you. Except with dating and dancing," the Doctor shot her a look, "What?"

"You just assume I'm..." he trailed off.

"What?" she raised an eyebrow.

"You just assume that I don't...dance."

Rose grinned, "What, are you telling me you DO...dance?"

"Nine hundred years old, me. I've been around a bit. I think you can assume that at some point I've DANCED."

Rose's grin widened, "You?!"

Angel's brow furrowed as she eyed the two of them oddly.

"Problem?"

"Doesn't the Universe implode or something if you...dance?"

"Well, I've got the moves but I wouldn't want to boast."

Rose turned back to the music, turning it up as he looked around, wrong footed. Rose walked towards him as he turned back to the wall determinedly, she held out a hand to him, "You've got the moves?" he looked at her, "Show me your moves."

"Rose, I'm trying to resonate concrete," he tried to excuse himself.

Rose didn't lower her hand, "Jack'll be back, he'll get us out. So come on, the world doesn't end 'cos the Doctor dances."

The Doctor turned off the sonic and leaned forward a bit, hanging onto the bars, testing them…when a thought crossed his mind. He put the sonic in his pocket and stepped back from the windows, turning to Rose thoughtfully. He stepped forward and took her hands in his own, turning them over and looking at them, "Barrage balloon?"

"...what?" Rose shook her head, lost.

"Hold on tight," he muttered, turning her hands over, "You were _hanging_ from a _barrage balloon_ …"

"Oh...yeah. About two minutes after you two left me. Thousands of feet above London, middle of a German air raid, Union Jack ALL over my chest..."

The Doctor raised his eyebrows, "I've travelled with a lot of people, but you're setting new records for jeopardy-friendly."

"Is this you dancing?" Rose asked as he turned back to her hands, "'Cos I've got notes."

"Hanging from a rope a thousand feet above London. Not a cut, not a bruise."

"Yeah, I know. Captain Jack fixed me up..."

"Oh, we're calling him 'Captain Jack' now, are we?"

"Well, his name's _Jack_ and he's a _captain_..."

"He's not _really_ a captain, Rose."

"D'you know what _I_ think? I think you're experiencing Captain Envy," the Doctor just half-nodded, looking at her hands. Rose rolled her eyes and moved to get him into a dancing position, "You'll find your feet at the end of your legs. You may care to move them."

"If ever he was a captain, he's been defrocked," the Doctor continued, standing there awkwardly, making no move to dance.

"Yeah?" Rose smiled, growing annoyed at his lack of dancing, "Shame I missed that."

"Actually, I quit," Jack said, "Nobody takes my frock," they looked around to see they were now in Jack's ship. Angel hobbled a bit, trying to keep herself from falling over from finding herself in a seated position with no seat. The Doctor quickly moved to her side, straightening her and helping her to a box to sit on, "Most people notice when they've been teleported. You guys are so sweet. Sorry about the delay. I had to take the nav-comm. offline to override the teleport security."

"You can spend ten minutes overriding your own protocols?" the Doctor wondered, "Maybe you should remember whose ship it is."

"Oh, I do. She was GORGEOUS. Like I told her, be back in five minutes," he smirked before moving to work on something under the control panel.

The Doctor looked around, "This is a Chula ship."

"Yeah, just like that medical transporter. Only, this one IS dangerous."

The Doctor clicked his fingers and his hands were instantly surrounded by the golden nanogenes.

"They're what fixed my hands up!" Rose pointed, "Jack called 'em, um..."

"Nanobots?" the Doctor asked.

"Nanogenes?" Angel suggested.

"Nanogenes, yeah," Rose nodded at her.

"Sub-atomic robots," the Doctor explained, "There's millions of them in here, see? Burned my hand on the console when we landed, all better now. They activate when the bulk head's sealed. Check you out for damage, fix any physical flaws," Rose beamed as the Doctor banished the nanogenes with a wave of his hands so they would focus on Angel's ankle as he turned to Jack, "Take us to the crash site. I need to see your space junk."

"As soon as I get the nav-comm. back online," Jack replied, exasperated. The Doctor just looked on, mildly annoyed, "Make yourself comfortable. Carry on with whatever it was you were..." he gestured at Rose and the Doctor, "...doing."

"We were talking about dancing!" the Doctor shouted, innocently.

"It didn't look like talking," Jack waggled his eyebrows.

"Didn't feel like dancing," Rose commented.

"I'm confused," Angel called, drawing their attention, as she waved the nanogenes away from her ankle, all better now, "Are we talking about dancing or se…"

"Right!" the Doctor cut in, making his way over to her, "Let's check that ankle of yours."

~8~

Nancy crept onto the bomb site, making an effort not to be seen. She quickly ducked behind a tent, only for floodlights to suddenly flash on, filling the site with light, catching her.

"Halt!" a soldier shouted, "Don't move!" the soldiers turned their guns on her, trapping her.

~8~

"So, you used to _be_ a Time Agent, now you're trying to _con_ them?" Rose asked as Jack sat by the pilot seat, her close by, the Doctor and Angel near the back.

"If it makes me sound any better, it's not for the money," Jack murmured, fiddling with a control.

"For what?"

"Woke up one day when I was working for them, found they'd stolen two years of my memories. I'd like them back."

"They stole your memories?"

"Two years of my life. No idea what I did," he looked over at the Doctor, who was eyeing him, "Your friend over there doesn't trust me. And, for all I know, he's right not to.

Angel leaned forward and rested a hand on his arm, making him look at her, " _I_ trust you Jack," she gave him a small smile. She didn't know if it was a 'feeling' or just what she'd gleamed of the man so far, but he was a good man, despite the conning, he was truly a good person at heart.

He returned it with a small grin of his own, "Thanks Ange," he patted her hand, a more platonic quality to it than they'd seen from the man...

When the computer bleeped.

"Ok," he nodded, spinning around in his chair, "We're good to go," the Doctor looked over at it, "Crash site?"

~8~

Nancy was led to a small shed where a soldier shot to his feet from where he'd been sitting, "As you were," the soldier commanded and the man sat back down, "Feeling any better?"

"Just a turn, sir," the man replied feverishly.

"Chain her up where Jenkins can keep an eye on her," he turned to the soldier holding Nancy.

Nancy was forced into a chair beside Jenkins at the table, handcuffed to it by the guard, "No," she pleaded, "Not in here. Not with him," she glanced over, seeing a scar forming on the back of Jenkins's hand.

"You shouldn't have broken in here if you didn't want to stay," the soldier told her.

"You don't understand. Not with HIM."

"This is a restricted area, miss," the soldier continued as Jenkins looked at Nancy in clear discomfort, "You're going to have to stay here for a bit. We're going to have to ask you a few questions."

Nancy didn't take her eyes off the trembling Jenkins as the guard turned to the soldier holding up the cutters, "Found these, sir."

"Very professional..." the soldier remarked, examining them, "Little bit TOO professional. Didn't just drop in by accident then, did you?"

"My little brother died here," she told them, "I wanted to find out what killed him."

"Take the men," the solder turned to the guards at the door, "Check the fence for any other breaches and search the area. She may not have come alone."

"Yes, sir," the soldiers remarked, leaving.

"Please!" Nancy cried, scared and pleading, as he turned to leave as well, "Listen, you CAN'T leave me here."

"Watch her Jenkins," he ordered.

"Yes, mummy," Jenkins nodded.

The soldier turned back to him, confused, "Jenkins!"

"Sorry, _sir_ ," Jenkins rubbed his forehead, "I…I don't know what's the matter with me."

"Look...lock me up, fine," Nancy said, her eyes on Jenkins, "But not here. Please, ANYWHERE but here!"

The soldier wasn't quite sure what to make of her request so he turned and left.

"You'll be alright, miss," Jenkins tried to reassure her, "I'm just a little..." she shook her handcuffs, trying to free herself, "Just a little...just a little..." she shook them more persistently as he started to pant, "What's the MATTER with you?"

"Please, let me go."

"Why would I do that?"

"'Cos you've got a scar on the back of your hand."

"Well, yes. But I don't see what that's got to do with anything."

"And you feel like you're gonna be sick. Like something's forcing its way up your throat…" Jenkins started heaving, "I know because I've seen it before."

"What's happening to me?" he breathed, scared.

"In a minute, you won't BE you anymore. You won't even _remember_ you. And unless you let me go, it's gonna happen to me too. PLEASE."

"What're you talking about?"

"What's your mother's name?"

"Matilda," he clasped his throat.

"You got a wife?"

His face turned red, "Yes."

"Wife's name?" she asked, but he stared at her, blank, "You got kids?" he looked horrified, "What's YOUR name?" he mouthed 'I don't know' unable to speak, " _Please._ Let me go. It's too late for you, I'm sorry. But _please,_ let me go," she cried in panic and desperation.

"What d'you meeee…" his face contorted in horrible pain, "M...muuummee..." his jaw was forced open as though something was about to emerge from his mouth.

Nancy screwed her eyes shut and looked away.

~8~

The Doctor, Rose, Jack, and Angel made their way along the rails near the bombsite, looking through the barbed wire.

"There it is," Jack pointed at it, "They've got Algy on duty. Must be important."

"We've gotta get past," the Doctor said.

"The words 'distract the guard' head in my general direction," Rose smirked.

"I don't think that'd be such a good idea," Jack told her.

"Don't worry...I can handle it."

"I've got to know Algy quite well since I've been in town. Trust me. _You're_ not his type. _I'll_ distract him," he walked away, winking back at them, "Don't wait up."

Rose turned to the Doctor, a questioning look on her face.

"Relax, he's a 51st century guy," he said, "He's just a bit more flexible when it comes to _dancing_."

"HOW flexible?" Rose frowned.

"Well, by his time, you lot have spread out across half the galaxy."

"Meaning?"

The Doctor grinned, "So many species, so little time..."

"What, that's what we do when we get out there?" Rose sounded disgusted, "That's our mission? We seek new life, and...and..."

" _Dance_ ," the Doctor sniggered.

"And as long as it's got a pulse, Jack would probably be willing to dance the horizontal tango with it," Angel added, nodding, though her attention was on Jack and making sure he was ok, not even looking back as the Doctor made a sort of choking noise and Rose stared at her, completely shocked she had said what she had.

When neither said anything for a moment she looked back, frowning, "You WERE using 'dancing' as a euphamism for sex, yes? Or did I get that wrong again?"

Rose just laughed and nodded, "Yeah we were."

The Doctor though, just stared at her, wide eyed, pink cheeked.

But Angel just smiled, pleased she'd caught that, before she turned back to watch as Jack jumped down on to the rail track on the bomb site where Algy was pacing and walked up to him with a grin, "Hey, tiger! How's it hanging?"

Algy turned to Jack, eyeing him inquisitively, "Mummy?"

"Algy, old sport, it's _me_."

"Mummy?"

Jack's smile faded, "It's me, _Jack._ "

"Jack?" Algy tilted his head to one side, "Are you my...mummy?" he suddenly started coughing, falling to his knees, and, before their very eyes, his face transformed into a gasmask.

Jack stared, horrorstruck, as the other soldiers hurried over.

"Stay back!" Angel shouted as they ran over.

"You men!" Jack commanded, "Stay away!"

They quickly ran to the man's side as he lay on the ground, lifeless.

"The effect's become airborne," the Doctor looked around, "Accelerating."

"What's keeping US safe?" Rose frowned.

"Nothing."

"Ah, here they come again," Jack looked up as the sirens sounded.

"All we need," Rose muttered before turning to Jack, "Didn't you say a bomb was gonna land...HERE?"

He nodded...when the sound of singing reached them.

"Never mind about that," the Doctor waved them off, "If the contaminants airborne now, there's _hours_ left."

"For what?" Jack frowned.

"'Til nothing. 'Til forever. For the entire Human Race. And…"

"Can anyone else hear singing?" Angel cut in, her brow furrowed as she looked around.

The Doctor quickly turned and headed for a shed, looking in to see Nancy sitting beside gasmasked Jenkins, singing him to sleep.

"Rock-a-by baby, on the tree tops, when the wind blows the cradle will rock..." she sang softly, "When the bough breaks the cradle will fall, and down will come baby, cradle and all," the Doctor creaked the door open more, startling Nancy to turn and look over at him. He gestured for her to keep singing, "Rock-a-by baby…" she yanked on the handcuffs, showing him, "...on the tree tops, when the wind blows the cradle will rock..."

The Doctor slowly approached her and pulled his sonic out, flicking it on and unlocking the cuffs. Jack, Rose, and Angel appeared in the doorway, watching as the handcuff snapped open. Nancy stood up and they all left the shed, Jenkins still asleep. They walked quickly back to the bombsite, the Doctor and Jack pulling the tarp off it to reveal the Chula med-ship as Nancy, Rose, and Angel watched.

"You see?" Jack told them, "Just an ambulance."

"That's an ambulance?" Nancy frowned at it.

"A Chula ambulance," Angel nodded.

"It's hard to explain," Rose put a comforting arm around the girl, "It's...it's from another world."

"They've been trying to get in," Jack muttered, looking at the controls.

Angel frowned, seeing writing scrawled over the outer capsule. She knelt down and gently ran her fingers over the inscription, _Schlechter Wolf._

"Of COURSE they have," the Doctor rolled his eyes as Jack began to enter the code, "They think they've got their hands on Hitler's latest secret weapon. What're you doing?"

"Well, the sooner you see this thing is empty, the sooner you'll see I had nothing to do with it," Jack replied, when suddenly the controls exploded, sparking, forcing them all to jump backwards to avoid it, "Didn't happen last time," Jack remarked as an alarm sounded.

"It hadn't _crashed_ last time. They're the _emergency_ protocols."

"Doctor, what IS that?" Rose nodded towards the light on the control panel, flashing.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The Doctor and Angel are getting closer! Yay! Be honest, how many of you would LOVE for the Doctor to scoop you up into his arms and carry you somewhere? I know I would :)
> 
> Lol, 'I'm confused, are we talking about dancing or sex?' Oh Angel, you're so cute in how you don't understand humans :)
> 
> As for Jack and Angel...there'll definitely be more of an explanation as to their 'relationship' as Series 1 goes on, with Jack officially describing the relationship he feels he has with Angel in The Parting of the Ways :)


	15. The Doctor Dances: Not Quite A Child

The child was standing alone in the hospital corridor, "Mummy?"

Suddenly all the patients climbed out of their beds and headed for the exits.

~8~

"Doctor!" Angel cried, looking at the shaking gates at the other end of the bomb site.

"Captain, secure those gates!" the Doctor called to Jack.

"Why?" he shook his head.

"Just do it!" the Doctor shouted. Jack rushed off as the Doctor turned to Nancy, "Nancy, how'd you get in here?"

"I cut the wire," she said.

"Show Rose," he tossed the sonic to Rose, "Setting 2,428-D."

"What?" Rose frowned.

"Reattaches barbed wire," he explained quickly, "Go!"

Jack quickly shut the gates just as the patients emerged from the hospital.

~8~

The sonic buzzed as Rose worked on the wires, reconnecting it as Nancy held the two ends together, "Who are you?" Nancy looked at her, "Who are any of you?"

"You'd never believe me if I told ya," Rose muttered.

"You just told me that was an ambulance from another world. There are people running around with gasmask heads calling for their mummies, and the sky's full of Germans dropping bombs on me. Tell me. Do you think there's _anything_ left I couldn't believe?"

"We're time travelers from the future."

"Mad, you are."

"We have a time travel machine. Seriously!"

"It's not that. Alright, you've got a time travel machine. I believe ya. Believe anything, me," she turned her eyes to the sky, at the explosions midair, the planes soaring around dropping bombs, "But what future?"

Rose looked at her from glancing at the sky as well, "Nancy, this isn't the end. I know how it looks. But it's not the end of the world or anything..."

"How can you say that?" Nancy looked at her, tears in her eyes, "LOOK at it."

"Listen to me. I was BORN in this city. I'm from here, in like, 50 years time."

"From _here_?"

Rose smiled, "I'm a Londoner. From your future."

"But...but you're not..."

"What?"

"German."

"Nancy, the Germans _don't_ come here. They don't win," Nancy looked skeptical, "Don't tell anyone I told you so, but do you know what? YOU win."

"We win?"

Rose just nodded, smiling, getting Nancy to laugh at the unbelievably good news, "Come on!" they hurried to their feet and headed back to the Doctor, Jack, and Angel.

~8~

Jack opened the top of the med-ship, "It's empty. Look at it."

"Just because it's empty doesn't mean there's nothing there," Angel replied cryptically.

Rose and Nancy joined them.

"What do you expect in a Chula medical transporter?" the Doctor asked him sarcastically, "Bandages? Cough drops?" he turned to Rose, "Rose?"

"I dunno," she shrugged.

"Yes, you do," he gestured to his hands.

"Nanogenes!"

"It wasn't empty, Captain. There were enough nanogenes in there to rebuild a species. Invisible little nanogenes that _you_ couldn't see."

Jack gaped, pale, shocked, "Oh, God."

"Getting it now, are we? When the ship crashes, the nanogenes escape. Billions upon billions of them, ready to fix all the cuts and bruises in the whole world. But what they find first is a dead child, probably killed earlier that night and wearing a gasmask."

"And they brought him back to life?" Rose's eyes widened, "They can DO that?"

"What's life? Life's easy. A quirk of matter. Nature's way of keeping meat fresh. Nothing to a nanogene. One problem, though, these nanogenes, they're not like the ones on your ship. This lot have never seen a human being before."

"So they don't know what a human being naturally looks like," Angel realized as Jack, Nancy, and Rose listened intently.

The Doctor nodded, "All they've got to go on is one little body, and there's not a lot left. But they carry right on. They do what they're programmed to do, they patch it up. Can't tell what's gasmask and what's skull, but they do their best. Then off they fly, off they go, work to be done. 'Cos you see now they THINK they know what people should look like and it's time to fix all the rest. And they won't _ever_ stop. They won't ever, _ever_ stop. The entire Human Race is gonna be torn down and rebuilt in the form of one terrified child looking for its mother, and NOTHING in the world can stop it!"

"I didn't know," Jack said defiantly.

The Doctor gave him a frigid stare before Angel stepped up, putting a hand on his shoulder. He glanced back at her, seeming to soften, before turning to look at the capsule once more, getting to work with the sonic.

"Rose?" Nancy called, terrified.

Rose rushed to her side, following the girl's gaze to see the patients struggling in their direction, making their way over the tracks. She looked back at the flashing red light on the control panel, "It's bringing the gasmask people here, isn't it?"

Angel frowned, "I'm not sure if it's the same for other ships, but when a TARDIS thinks it's under attack it sends out a psychic call to its pilots. Standard protocol."

What she wouldn't give to be a TARDIS pilot. She could operate a TARDIS, help the Doctor fly her, but...there were traditions involved with becoming an official 'pilot' for a TARDIS, meaning a pilot who shared a psychic link with the TARDIS, a pilot who was permitted to take on a companion. And...there were restrictions, especially when sharing a TARDIS. At any time, a TARDIS could only have two official pilots, typically two who would bring on two friends each to help them pilot the older generation TARDISes.

The Doctor nodded, "Same for the Chula, the ship's calling up the troops."

"But...the gasmask people aren't troops..." Rose frowned.

"They are now," the Doctor looked up, "This is a battle-field ambulance. The nanogenes don't just fix you up, they get you ready for the front line. Equip you, program you."

"That's why the child's so strong. Why it could do that phoning thing."

"It's a fully equipped Chula warrior, yes. All that weapons tech in the hands of a hysterical four-year-old, looking for his mummy. And now there's an _army_ of them."

They looked around as the patients stopped at the fence, surrounding them.

"Why don't they attack?" Jack tensed.

"Good little soldiers. Waiting for their commander."

"The child?" Jack looked stunned.

"Jamie," Nancy murmured.

"What?" Jack looked at her.

She turned to give him a look, "Not 'the child.' _Jamie_."

"So, how long until the bomb falls?" Rose asked.

"Any second," Jack looked up.

"What's the matter, Captain?" the Doctor looked at Jack, "Bit close to the volcano for you?"

"He's just a little boy," Nancy breathed.

"Oh, I know," Angel stepped up, putting an arm around the girl.

Nancy's face scrunched as she teared up, "He's just a little boy who wants his mummy."

"I know," the Doctor stepped up as well, "There isn't a little boy born who wouldn't tear the world apart to save his mummy. And this little boy can."

"So what're we gonna DO?" Rose shouted loudly.

"I don't know."

Rose sighed as Nancy began to cry, "It's my fault."

"No," the Doctor shook his head.

"It _is_. It's _all_ my fault."

"How can it be your…" the Doctor frowned, when Angel reached behind the girl to touch his arm, he looked at her curiously.

"She _isn't_ a child either," she recalled, she'd said those words when they'd first encountered Jamie.

The Doctor blinked and looked at the patients calling for mummy, "Nancy, what age are you?" the Doctor turned to her, "20? 21? Older than you look, yes?"

A bomb dropped nearby, causing Rose and Jack to flinch, "Doctor, that bomb," Jack reminded him, "We've got _seconds._ "

Another landed.

"You can teleport us out," Rose turned to Jack as the Doctor and Angel focused on Nancy.

"Not you guys. The nav-comm.'s back online. Gonna take too long to override the protocols."

"So it's Volcano Day," the Doctor remarked, not turning away from Nancy, though he was talking to Jack, "Do what you've got to do."

"Jack?" Rose looked at him, betrayed.

Jack looked at her, almost apologetically, before teleporting himself out.

"How old were you five years ago?" the Doctor asked Nancy gently, "15? 16? Old enough to give birth, anyway."

Nancy sobbed harder, looking away, shamefaced, as she leaned into Angel's embrace, the woman comforting her, "He's not your brother, is he?" she whispered and Nancy shook her head into Angel's arm.

"A teenage single mother in 1941," the Doctor nodded, solemn, "So you hid. You lied," Nancy nodded, "You even lied to him."

The gates were thrown open and Jamie stood there, in the forefront of the army of patients, ready for battle, "Are you my mummy?"

"He's gonna keep asking, Nancy. He's _never_ gonna stop."

Angel rubbed her arm, "Tell him."

No reply.

"Nancy...the future of the Human Race is in your hands," the Doctor stepped forward, putting a hand on the woman's shoulder as well, "Trust us...and tell him."

Nancy took a breath, still tearful, as Jamie came closer, "Are you my mummy?"

Angel gave Nancy a gentle push towards the child.

"Are you my mummy? Are you my mummy?"

"Yes," Nancy said softly, steeling herself, "Yes. I AM your mummy," she faced him as he slowly walked forwards.

"Mummy?"

"I'm here."

"Are you my mummy?"

She crouched down in front of him, "I'm here."

"Are you my mummy?"

"Yes."

"He doesn't understand," Angel whispered sadly as Rose came to join them.

"There's not enough of him left," the Doctor agreed grimly.

Nancy just focused on Jamie, "I _am_ your mummy," she said through her tears, "I will _always_ be your mummy. I'm so sorry," she pulled him into her arms, no longer caring what would happen. The nanogenes swarmed around them, glowing brightly, turning them golden, "I am so, _so_ sorry."

"What's happening?" Rose asked as they watched Nancy hug her child, "Doctor, it's changing her, we should…"

"Shh…" the Doctor held out an arm to silence her, staring intently at the two surrounded by nanogenes. Angel just watching with a small smile, "Come on, _please_ ," he whispered, "Come on, you CLEVER little nanogenes, figure it out! The mother. She's _the mother_! There's _gotta_ be enough information, figure it out!"

"What's happening?!"

"They can tell she's related to him," Angel answered quietly.

Nancy fell away from Jamie as the nanogenes vanished. The trio running over to her, Angel and Rose helping her up as the Doctor ran to Jamie, "Oh, come on. Give me a day like _this_. Give me this _one_ ," he grabbed the gasmask and yanked it off, revealing a perfectly ordinary, very sweet looking, little boy underneath. Nancy stared in delight as the Doctor laughed ecstatically. He lifted the boy into the air, spinning around with him, "Ah ha ha! Welcome back! Twenty years 'til pop music, you're gonna _love_ it," he hugged the boy, laughing all the while.

"What happened?" Nancy breathed.

"You're his mum," Angel shrugged, as though it explained everything.

The Doctor laughed at Nancy's confused expression, "The nanogenes recognized the superior information. The parent DNA. They didn't change YOU because YOU changed them! Ha ha!" he plunked Jamie down in front of her, "Mother knows best!"

"Jamie..." Nancy wept, pulling him to her.

A bomb landed nearby.

"Doctor, that bomb..." Rose began.

"Taken care of it," the Doctor waved her off.

"How?"

He gestured at Jamie and Nancy, "Psychology!"

A bomb suddenly fell straight towards them, only to be caught in the blue force field of Jack's ship. A moment later Jack appeared, hovering in the tunnel of light, sitting on the bomb, "Doctor!"

"Good lad!"

"The bomb's already commenced detonation. I've put it in stasis but it won't last long."

"Change of plan, don't need the bomb. Can you get rid of it? Safely as you can?"

"Rose?" Jack looked at her.

"Yeah?" she smiled.

"Goodbye," he said and disappeared, leaving Rose just slightly let down, before reappearing, "By the way, _love_ the t-shirt," he grinned widely as Rose pulled on her t-shirt embarrassedly.

Jack disappeared once more, his ship whizzing off into the night's sky. She looked over at the Doctor to see him watching Angel step forward, staring at her hands intently. A moment later nanogenes swarmed around her, she smiled and turned around, holding out her hands to them. The Doctor beamed, a small flutter stirring in his stomach at the sight of her just... _glowing_...truly looking like an angel, before he stepped forward, taking her hands, pulling the nanogenes to him as she stepped back.

"What're you doing?" Rose asked.

"Software patch," the Doctor said, "Gonna e-mail the upgrade. You want moves, Rose? I'll give you moves," he flicked his hands at the patients, causing the nanogenes to fly away from him and towards the gasmasked people just standing there, lost. He gave the widest grin ever as they fell to the ground, the nanogenes surrounding them, "Everybody _lives_! Just this once. _Everybody_ lives!" he ran forward as the patients rose to their feet, restored to their normal human selves, "Dr. Constantine. Who never left his patients. Back on your feet, constant doctor! World doesn't wanna get by without you just yet, and I don't blame it one bit," he nodded at the patients, "These are your patients. All better, now!"

"Yes, yes...so it seems," Constantine nodded, though very confused, "They also seem to be standing around in a disused railway station. Is there any particular reason for that?"

The Doctor laughed, "Yeah, well, you know, cutbacks. Listen, whatever was wrong with them in the past, you're probably gonna find that they're cured. Just tell them what a great doctor you are. Don't make a big thing of it. Ok?"

He turned and ran back to Rose and Angel as an old lady hobbled over towards Constantine, "Dr. Constantine!"

"Mrs. Harcourt, how much better you are looking!" he turned to her.

"My leg's grown back! When I come to the hospital, I had ONE leg."

He looked down at her leg, "Well, there is a war on. Is it possible you miscounted?"

The Doctor grinned at that before he ran back to the med-ship, jumping on top of it, "Right, you lot! Lots to do! Beat the Germans, save the world, don't forget the Welfare State!" Constantine smiled at him as he and the patients walked away, "Setting this to self-destruct, soon as everybody's clear. History says there was an explosion here. Who am I to argue with history?"

"Usually the first in line," Rose remarked as she linked her arm with Angel, who nodded in agreement.

The Doctor just smiled down at them as they grinned back up.

~8~

The Doctor ran to the console, still chattering away happily, as Rose and Angel joined him. Angel looked down at the controls a moment before smiling and putting in some controls and coordinates as he talked, "The nanogenes will clean up the mess and switch themselves off. Because I just told them to. Nancy and Jamie will go to Dr. Constantine for help, ditto, all in all, all things considered… _fantastic_!"

Rose smiled at him, "Look at you, beaming away like you're Father Christmas!"

"Who says I'm not, red-bicycle-when-you-were-twelve?"

Rose blinked, "What?"

"And everybody lives!" he repeated, throwing his arms out, excited, "Everybody lives!" he flipped a switch down on the console in excitement, "I need more days like this."

"Doctor..."

"Go on, ask me _anything_. I'm on FIRE!"

"What about Jack?" Rose asked. The Doctor's grin faded, "Why'd he say goodbye?"

"Why don't we find out?" Angel called.

They looked at her as she pulled a lever, sending them off into the Vortex.

~8~

Jack's ship soared through space as he clambered back to the pilot's seat, "Ok, computer, how long can we keep the bomb in stasis?"

"Stasis decaying at ninety percent per cycle," it announced, "Detonation in three minutes."

"Can we jettison it?"

"Any attempt to jettison the device will precipitate detonation. One hundred percent probability."

He closed his eyes a moment, "We could stick it in an escape pod."

"There is no escape pod on board."

"I see the flaw in that. I'LL get in the escape pod!"

"There is no escape pod on board."

"Did you check everywhere?"

"Affirmative."

"Under the sink?!"

"Affirmative."

He nodded, realizing his situation, "Ok. Out of one hundred...exactly _how_ dead am I?"

"Termination of Captain Jack Harkness in under two minutes...one hundred percent probability."

He sighed, "Lovely. Thanks. Good to know the numbers."

"You're welcome."

"Ok then. Think we'd better initiate emergency protocol 4-1-7."

"Affirmative."

A drink appeared in the middle of the controls.

He smiled, reaching out to take it, sipping it, "Oh, a little too much vermouth. See if I come here again!" he laughed, "Funny thing...last time I was sentenced to death, I ordered four hyper-vodkas for my breakfast. All a bit of a blur after that. Woke up in bed with BOTH my executioners. Hmm, lovely couple. They stayed in touch!" he pondered that a moment, "Can't say that about most executioners," he laughed again, sadly this time, "Anyway. Thanks for everything, computer. It's been great," he sighed...

And then frowned, the sound of 'Moonlight Serenade' drifting over to him.

He spun around to see Rose and the Doctor in a rather awkward dancing position at the end of the ship.

"Well, hurry up then!" Rose shouted to him.

"Come on!" Angel added with a laugh, watching the Doctor and Rose.

Jack jumped out of his seat and dashed through the small doorway and into the TARDIS where Rose was attempting to teach the Doctor how to waltz. He looked up at the large room before him, compared to the small box he'd seen moments ago.

"Right, and turn..." Rose said as the Doctor tried to spin her, getting their arms tangled behind them in the process.

Angel laughed, pushing a lever, closing the doors to the TARDIS and getting them back into the Vortex, away from the soon to be exploding ship.

Rose stepped away from the Doctor, rubbing her arm, "Ok, ok, try and spin me again, but this time, don't get my arm up my back!" the Doctor just looked sheepish, "No extra points for a half-nelson."

"I'm SURE I used to know this stuff," the Doctor replied, put off, before turning to Jack, "Close the door, will you. Your ship's about to blow up, there's gonna be a draft."

"Already taken care of," Angel called.

The Doctor walked over to a monitor, lightly placing his hand on the small of her back as he stepped beside her, and glanced at it, seeing they were already back in the Vortex. He laughed, "Fantastic!"

"Welcome to the TARDIS," Rose turned to Jack.

"Much bigger on the inside..." he remarked.

"You'd better be," the Doctor replied.

"I think what the Doctor's TRYING to say is...you may cut in," Rose grinned as she took Jack's hand, ready to start the next dance.

"I've just remembered!" the Doctor shouted.

"What?" Rose looked up at him.

'In the Mood' started playing as the Doctor danced in time with the music, snapping his fingers, "I _can_ dance!"

"Actually, Doctor...I thought _Jack_ might like this dance."

"I'm sure he would, Rose. I'm absolutely certain. That's why…" he suddenly reached out and grabbed Angel, pulling her to him as he spun her around perfectly, Rose and Jack watching with large grins before they too started dancing all around the console.

The Doctor spun Angel once more before dipping her sharply, earning a laugh of delight from her that made him beam.

~8~

Rose and Jack walked towards the door to the corridors that would lead to the rooms, laughing, tired though from all the dancing. Jack had tried to dance with Angel, only really managing a short dance before the Doctor 'cut in'...more like stole her away to dance with her himself. Rose had laughed at that, Angel hadn't seemed to notice what the Doctor had done, the Doctor didn't even seem to know why he'd done it, but the humans could tell. Rose had noticed Jack back off quite a bit after that dance, which he'd admittedly tried to flirt a bit, dance a little too close to Angel, which seemed to make the girl uncomfortable. After that though, Jack had kept his distance, or at the very least made it a more platonic sort of dance, keeping respectable distance, sensing her discomfort with his advances and always aware of the Doctor's narrowed...obviously jealous...eyes on him, watching. But after that Angel had seemed to relax around Jack, laughing and having a nice with with the three of them all just dancing around.

The Doctor and Angel watched them go, just smiling softly. The Doctor beamed as he turned to the console, setting some controls down.

"Doctor…" Angel began from her seat on the captain's chair, "Can I ask you something?"

"Go on," he turned to lean against the console, mimicking the words she had said to him when he'd asked about her gift.

"Before, you said that just this once, everyone lives…what did you mean?"

He sighed and moved to sit beside her, "It just seems like...every time we get into some sort of adventure...someone dies. Helping me, protecting me, because of me…" he shook his head, "I don't like losing people, losing anyone."

She nodded slowly, before linking her arm through his and leaning on his shoulder, "I'm sorry. But you know it'll be different now, don't you?"

"What do you mean?" he frowned, looking at her.

She smiled up at him, "You've got _me_ now and, like you said before to Van Statten, _two_ Time Lords are better than one," he slowly started to smile, "And between the two of us, I'm sure we CAN save them all."

"You really are fantastic you know that?" he smiled down at her, brushing some hair behind her ear.

"Maybe I imprinted more than just that bit of your personality then," she remarked, closing her eyes gently, "You're fantastic as well."

"Thank you," he breathed, truly touched that someone, one of his people, knowing what he'd done to the rest of them as he had told her, could not only forgive him for it, but truly believe he was still a good person. And, without even thinking, or realizing he had done so, he dropped a small kiss on the top of her head.

* * *

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Awwww :) This will be the start of things to come in terms of altering the plot. I did this a bit in the Lunar Cycle, changing what happened, like Evy getting taken along with Amy during Hungry Earth or Evy being the one with the Weeping Angel in her mind. Here, Angel will definitely impact the lives of those around her.
> 
> As for the TARDISes and her 'pilots' well...more about that in The Christmas Invasion on exactly what sort of 'restrictions' come with sharing a TARDIS...I do think it's a 'restriction' you'll all enjoy :)
> 
> Next chapter...MICKEY! ^-^ I seriously love Mickey. Him and Rory, so need love. Time Lord love. I think we all know just the Time Lady for the job :)


	16. Boom Town: A Familiar Face

"I've checked the figures," a man said, pacing before the mayor of Cardiff, "I've checked them again and again. ALWAYS the same result. The design is _not safe_. It could result in the death of _millions_. I beg of you...stop the project right now, before it's too late."

"Well," the plump female mayor looked up at him, "Goodness me. Obviously, Mr. Cleaver, you're the expert..."

"Then...you'll stop it?"

"Seems I have no choice," she replied as her stomach rumbled noisily, she shot him an apologetic smile, "Oh...do excuse me. Civic duties leave little time for a sandwich."

"But you promise you'll stop it, today?"

"Well of course," she nodded, "Nothing is more important than _human_ _life_..." her face hardened as Mr. Cleaver looked at her slightly concerned, she forced her face to lighten, "What do you take me for? Some sort of maniac?"

"Why, no..."

"Am I right in thinking you've shown your results _only_ to me?"

"Just to you. No one else."

She smiled, "Wise move."

Mr. Cleaver heaved a giant sigh of relief and took off his glasses, wiping his eyes, fatigued with worry, "I can't tell you Mrs. Blaine, this is such a weight off my mind. I've barely slept. I couldn't believe my own readings," he turned, standing the doorway, pulling a hanky from his pocket, not noticing the mayor look at him darkly and raise her hand to her forehead, "The scale of it, destruction like the British Isles has never seen before," he put his glasses back on and squinted at a model of the nuclear power plant that was about to be built, "If I didn't know better, I'd almost think that someone WANTED this project to go wrong. As though they intended to wipe this city off the map. Thank goodness we've got you, our esteemed leader."

He turned around only to see a large green alien standing behind him.

He screamed as Margaret the Slitheen attacked.

~8~

Mickey Smith stepped out of the train station to Cardiff, following the signs out till he reached Roald Dahl Plass where he could see the TARDIS parked in front of the silver water fountain. He smiled as he made his way over, knocking on the door.

It swung open almost immediately as Jack popped his head out, "Who the hell are you?" Jack eyed him.

"What d'you mean, who the hell am I?" Mickey shot back, "Who the hell are _you_?"

"Captain Jack Harkness. Whatever you're selling, we're not buying."

"Get out of my way!" Mickey shoved past him into the TARDIS.

"Don't tell me, this must be Mickey," Jack called as he shut the door behind him.

The Doctor looked down from where he was standing on a ladder, working on some wires, a red light strapped to his forehead, "Here comes trouble!" he shouted down cheerily to Mickey, "How're you doing, Ricky boy?"

"It's Mickey!" he called up to him before stepping over to Rose, who was standing by the console.

"Don't listen to him, he's winding you up," Rose waved off the Doctor.

"You look fantastic," Mickey smiled at her as they gave each other a large hug.

"Aw, sweet, look at these two," Jack remarked before calling up to the Doctor, "How come _I_ never get any of that?"

"Buy me a drink first," the Doctor replied.

"You're such hard work."

"But worth it."

"Did you manage to find it?" Rose asked as she pulled away from Mickey.

"There you go," Mickey handed over her passport.

Rose grinned up at the Doctor, brandishing the item, "I can go anywhere now!"

"I told you, you don't NEED a passport!" he rolled his eyes at her.

"It's all very well going to Platform One and Justicia and the Glass Pyramid of San Kloon but what if we end up in Brazil? I might need it. You see, I'm prepared for anything," she stuck her tongue out at him, smiling.

"Sounds like you're staying, then," Mickey remarked sadly.

There was an awkward silence as the Doctor looked between them curiously, before his glance was pulled to the gantry where Angel had just stepped out of the door, unnoticed.

Mickey smiled, trying to lighten the tension, "So, what're you doing in Cardiff? And who the hell's Jumping Jack Flash? I mean, I don't mind you hanging out with big-ears up there…"

"Oi!" the Doctor cried, indignant.

"Look in the mirror," Mickey retorted.

The Doctor looked over at Angel, who was trying not to laugh, before shaking his head and turning back to his work.

"But this guy, I dunno, he's kinda..."

"Handsome?" Jack grinned.

"More like cheesy."

"Early 21st Century slang…is cheesy good or bad?"

"It's bad."

"But bad means good, isn't that right?"

"Are you saying I'm not handsome?" the Doctor asked, climbing down the ladder, but everyone ignored him. He looked up at Angel who just gave him a playful smile and shook her hand in a so-so fashion, earning an eye roll from him, he already knew she considered him 'great looking' which secretly pleased him to no end.

He'd felt...odd...when they'd met Jack, when the man had kissed Angel's hand. His stomach had twisted in knots and he'd felt the strange desire to punch the man for doing so. But then he'd seen Angel shifting uncomfortably, wiping her hand off, not _at all_ attracted to Jack in _that_ manner and he'd felt better. Her comment about him being 'great looking' instead of Jack had helped enormously. Jack though...he'd seemed to back off quite a bit in his flirting when Angel had seemed disinterested. He knew that the men and women of the 51st century had stronger pheromones than the average modern-day human. It seemed Jack had realized they weren't working on Angel and left it at that. He'd caught Jack glance at Angel when she'd wiped her hand off, seen an expression on his face as though he were almost sorry he'd made her uncomfortable in the first place. He had to admit, Jack was a good man at heart, he'd taken to more of a playful interaction with Angel after their dance party, as opposed to his flirty disposition around Rose, trying to joke with her and just get to know her, NOT flirt with her, which he was thankful for...though, if he were honest, he didn't know _why_ it relieved him so much...

"We just stopped off," Rose told Mickey, "We need to refuel. Thing is, Cardiff's got this rift running through the middle of the city. It's invisible, but it's like an earthquake fault between different dimensions…"

"The rift was healed back in 1869…" the Doctor added, shaking himself from his thoughts.

"Thanks to a girl named Gwyneth, 'cos these creatures called the Gelth, they were using the rift as a gateway but she saved the world and closed it."

Mickey nodded slowly, trying to follow, when Jack added, "But closing a rift always leaves a scar. And that scar generates energy, harmless to the Human Race…"

"But _perfect_ for the TARDIS," the Doctor grinned, "So just park it here for a couple of days right on top of the scar and…"

"Open up the engines, soak up the radiation…"

"Like filling her up with petrol and off we go!" Rose laughed as Jack high-fived her.

"Into time!"

"And space!" the Doctor high-fived Rose as well.

"Whoo!" she cheered.

Mickey just blinked, "My God, have you _seen_ yourselves? You all think you're so clever, don't you?"

"Yeah!" the Doctor nodded.

"Yeah," Rose agreed.

"Yep!" Jack laughed.

"Oh, I don't know," a voice said from the side. They looked over to see Angel walking down the steps from the gantry, "I think they're rather annoying sometimes."

"Hey!" came three indignant cries, though their smiles remained, already used to her bluntness.

Angel just shook her head at them before turning to a stunned Mickey and smiled gently, "You must be Mickey!" she pulled him into a hug that he awkwardly returned, not quite sure who the other blonde girl was, "I'm the Angel, but you can just call me Angel."

" _The_ Angel?" Mickey frowned, "What like _the_ Doctor?"

"Exactly!" Angel pulled back, beaming at him, making him smile as well at having figured it out himself, "Time Lady, very nice to meet you."

He laughed, now much more at ease, "Nice to meet you too."

"I got Rose to tell me _all_ about you," she told him, looping her arm through his and leading him towards the doors, ignoring the three standing behind them, two who were watching the duo a little less than pleased with how friendly they had gotten so quickly, while the other watched the nearly steaming pair with amusement, "Did you _really_ get captured by a Nestene Duplicate?" Angel continued to chat as they stepped outside, closing the door behind them.

"Yeah, it was…" they could hear Mickey reply before the door shut.

"Well," Jack grinned at the frowns on Rose and the Doctor's faces, "You gotta admit, Angie is _much_ friendlier than you Doc."

The Doctor seemed to tense more at that, shooting a glare at Jack before stalking towards the door, Jack laughing behind him as he and Rose followed.

"Should take another 24 hours," the Doctor cut into whatever Angel and Mickey were talking about as he stepped out, "Which means we've got time to kill."

"That old lady's staring," Mickey nodded, seeing a woman doing just that.

"Probably wondering what four people could do inside a small wooden box..." Jack mused, shooting the Doctor a suggestive look as he slapped him on the shoulder, earning a snigger from Rose and Angel.

"What are you captain of?" Mickey looked at Jack, "The Innuendo Squad?" Jack gave him a 'whatever' sign and walked off, "Wait! Er, the TARDIS, we can't just leave it. Doesn't it get noticed?"

"Yeah, what's with the police box?" Jack paused, "Why _does_ it look like that?"

"It's a cloaking device," Rose said contemplatively.

The Doctor just looked at Angel, "You want to take this one?"

She rolled her eyes good naturedly, she was always up to taking questions about TARDISes, they were just an amazing topic and one she could actually talk about in depth, "The TARDIS has what's called a Chameleon Circuit which allows it to disguise itself as anything anywhere it lands. If this were...Ancient Rome, it'd be a statue on a plinth or a column or something similar."

"Fantastic," the Doctor beamed, walking over to her and putting his arm around her shoulders, tugging her away from Mickey as he shook her lightly, praisingly, before turning to Rose, Jack, and Mickey, "I landed in the 1960s, it disguised itself as a police box, and the circuit got stuck."

"You mean it _broke_ ," Angel corrected with a sly grin.

"Oh, alright," he mock sighed, "It broke."

"So it copied a real thing?" Mickey looked at the box, "There actually _was_ police boxes?"

"Yeah, on street corners. Phone for help before they had radios and mobiles. If they arrested someone, they could shove them inside until help came. Like a little prison cell."

"Why don't you just fix the circuit?" Jack leaned forward a bit.

"I like it! Don't you?"

"I love it," Rose grinned.

Angel leaned over to Mickey, "I've offered to fix it loads of times…he just doesn't want to be outdone by a girl."

Mickey laughed at that and looked at the Doctor, "But that's what I meant! There's no police boxes anymore, so doesn't it get noticed?"

"Ricky, let me tell you something about the Human Race," the Doctor told him, "You put a mysterious blue box slap bang in the middle of town and what do they do?" Mickey opened his mouth to reply but the Doctor just continued, "Walk past it. Now stop your nagging, let's go and explore!"

He turned and linked hands with Angel, who quickly grabbed Mickey's arm and pulled him along, "I think you have an _excellent_ point though Mickey," she told the young man, "HE," she nodded at the Doctor, "Just doesn't like being proven wrong. He'll make up all sorts of nonsense words and put a spin on it, but it doesn't take away from the fact that _you're_ right."

Mickey beamed at that and laughed out, pleased that _someone_ seemed to appreciate him. From what he'd seen so far, he really liked this Angel girl, she actually paid some sort of attention to him despite the fact the Doctor was doing _all_ he could to divert it.

And the alien thought he was _so_ inconspicuous.

"What's the plan?" Rose called as she jogged up to Mickey's other side, taking his hand as Jack walked beside the Doctor.

"I don't know!" the Doctor grinned, "Cardiff. Early 21st Century. And the wind's coming from the...East. Trust me, safest place in the Universe."

~8~

Margaret the Slitheen stood on a podium, holding a glass of champagne, and addressing a room full of civic dignitaries, journalists, waiters, "This Nuclear Power station right in the heart of Cardiff City will bring jobs for all!" she climbed down the podium and over to the miniature of it, "As you can see, as Lord Mayor, I've had to sanction some radical redevelopments..." a camera flashed and Margaret threw her hand in front of her face, "No photographs!" she snapped, angry, "What did I say? Take pictures of _the project_ by all means, but not _me_ , thank you," she smiled, turning back to the room, "So, Cardiff Castle will be demolished allowing the Blaidd Drwg Project to rise up, tall and proud. A monument to Welsh industry. And yes, some of you might shiver. The words 'nuclear power station' and 'major population center' aren't exactly the happiest of bedfellows. But I give you my personal guarantee that as long as I walk upon this Earth, no harm will come to any of my citizens. Now drink up. A toast, to the future!"

She raised her glass as the room followed suit, cheering, "To the future!"

"And believe me...it will GLOW," she added and the room applauded. She nodded modestly at them and the guests began to mingle, a young woman hurrying over to her.

"Excuse me, Mrs. Blaine?" the woman smiled, "My name's Cathy Salt, I represent the Cardiff Gazette."

"I'm sorry, I'm not doing interviews, I can't bear self publicity."

"But are you aware of the curse?"

Margaret looked her up and down with a fake smile, "Whatever do you mean? Cathy, wasn't it?"

"Cathy Salt. That's what some of your engineers are saying. That the Blaidd Drwg Project is cursed."

"Sounds rather silly to me."

"That's what I thought. I was just chasing a bit of local color. But the funny thing is, when you start piecing it all together, it _does_ begin to look a bit odd..."

"In what way?" Margaret asked coldly.

"The deaths! The number of deaths associated with this project. First of all, there was the entire team of the European Safety Inspectors..."

"But they were _French_! It's not _my_ fault if 'Danger, Explosives!' was only written in Welsh," she turned and started walking on.

"And then there was that accident with the Cardiff Heritage Committee…" Cathy persisted.

"The electrocution of that swimming pool was put down to natural wear and tear."

"And then the architect?"

"It was raining. Visibility was low, my car simply couldn't stop."

"And then just recently, Mr. Cleaver, the government's nuclear adviser..."

"Slipped on an icy patch."

"He was _decapitated_."

"It was a VERY icy patch. I'm afraid these stories are nothing more than typical small town thinking. I really haven't got time. Now, if you'll excuse me..." she turned to go but Cathy hurried around her, blocking the way.

"Except, before he died, Mr. Cleaver posted some of his findings online."

"Did he now?" Margaret asked, now interested.

"If you know where to look. He was concerned about the reactor."

"Oh!" Margaret laughed it off, "All that technical stuff!"

"Specifically, that the design of the suppression pool would cause the hydrogen recombiners to fail, precipitating in the collapse in the containment isolation system resulting in a meltdown."

"Who's been doing her homework?" Margaret looked at her, impressed.

"That's my job."

"I think..." Margaret began to concede, "Cathy Salt...I think you and I should have a word in private," she led her quickly down the hall, when her stomach rumbled loudly, "Ooh! My little tum is complaining. I think we might have to make a detour to the ladies."

"I'll wait here."

Margaret just grabbed her hand and pulled her along, "Oh, come on. All girls together!" she tugged her into the ladies room, "So, you were saying? These outlandish theories of yours?" she quickly hurried into a cubicle and shut the door, leaving Cathy waiting outside…grimacing as a wet, farting noise sounded from inside the stall.

"Sounds like we got here just in time."

"Continue."

"Well, I don't know much about nuclear physics. But from what I could make out, Cleaver was saying that the whole project could go up..."

Inside the cubicle, Margaret began to unzip her forehead.

"...worse than Chernobyl," she glanced over to see flickering blue lights under the toilet door, "Is there something wrong with the lights?"

"Oh, they're always on the blink. I can't tell you how many memos I've sent. So, Chernobyl..."

"Apparently, but a thousand times worse."

Margaret struggled to get out of her body suit.

"I know it sounds absurd, there must be so many safety regulations. But Cleaver seemed to be talking about a nuclear holocaust. He almost made it sound deliberate. I mean, we're hardly the 'Sunday Times,' it's only the 'Cardiff Gazzette,' but we have a duty to report the facts."

"And you're going to print this information?" Margaret asked, her voice sounding garbled as she was now in her alien form.

"Are you alright? You sound a bit…"

"Sore throat," she coughed, "Just a little tickle. But tell me, do you intend to make this information public?"

"I have to."

"So be it," Margaret muttered threateningly, raising a claw ready to push the door open.

"Mind you, my boyfriend thinks I'm mad," Cathy continued, heading towards the sink, unaware of Margaret lowering her claw, listening, "We're getting married next month. And he says if I cause a fuss, I could lose my job. Just when we need the money..."

"...boyfriend?" Margaret whispered.

"Jeffery. Civil Servant. He's nothing exciting, but he's mine."

"When's the wedding?"

"The 19th," Cathie sighed, turning to lean against the sinks, "It's really just to stop my mother from nagging, but the baby sort of clinched it, I suppose."

Margaret sank down onto the toilet, "You're with...child?"

"Three months," Cathy beamed, "It's not showing yet. Wasn't planned. It was an accident. Nice accident, though."

"Congratulations."

"Thank you. How about you? You got any kids?"

"No..." Margaret called sadly.

"Is there a Mr. Blaine?"

"Not anymore," her voice trembled, "I'm all on my own. I had quite a sizeable family, once upon a time, wonderful brothers. Oh, they were bold. But all of them gone now. Maybe you're right. Maybe I'm cursed."

"No, no...I don't think so. Not really."

"You're very kind. If you don't mind, I might be a while. You run along. Perhaps we could do this another day."

"Are you alright?"

"Fine!"

"Ok, I'll tell you what, uh, I'll leave my details with your office. Thanks for talking."

"Thank you..."

Cathy cast one final, concerned glance at the cubical before leaving the room.

Margaret quietly moaned in sorrow before closing her eyes in misery.

~8~

Mickey was sitting in between the Doctor and Angel in a nice restaurant in Cardiff, across from Jack who had Rose next to him. He'd gone to sit by Rose but Angel had pulled him beside her, intent to talk more with him, which he was pleased to do, it wasn't often that people were interested in what plain old Mickey Smith had to say. The Doctor though had tried to maneuver himself to sit by Angel as well and somehow ended up sitting on the other side of _him_. He sniggered a bit at the slight pout the Doctor had given as they sat down. He shook his head, paying attention to Jack as he told them all an exciting story, "I swear, six feet tall and with TUSKS!"

"You're lying through your teeth!" the Doctor shook his head, amused.

"I'd've gone bonkers!" Rose laughed, "That's the word, bonkers!"

"I mean, it turns out the white things are tusks and I mean TUSKS!" Jack continued, "And it's woken, and it's _not_ happy…"

"How could you _not_ know it was there?" Angel asked, shaking her head at him.

"And we're standing there, fifteen of us, NAKED…"

"Naked?!" Rose gasped in laugher.

"And I'm like, 'oh, no, no, it's got _nothing_ to do with me!' And then it roars, and we are running. Oh my God, we are RUNNING! And Brakovitch falls, so I turn to him and I say…"

"'I knew we should've turned left!'" Mickey chimed in with the punch line, sending them into rounds of laughter.

"That's _my_ line!"

"I don't BELIEVE you," Rose laughed, "I don't believe a word you say EVER, that is _so_ brilliant!"

The Doctor smiled, glancing over at a newspaper an old man nearby was reading…the smile instantly fading from his face as he stood up.

"Did you ever get your clothes back?"

"No," Jack shook his head, "I just picked him up went right for the ship. Full throttle, didn't stop until I hit the space-lanes, I was shaking! It was unbelievable, I'm freaking out and by the time I got there I was fifteen light-years away I was like this!" he held up his hand to show them it shaking.

"Doctor?" Angel asked. They looked over to see her watching the Doctor, standing before them with the newspaper, having pulled it out of the man's hands.

"And I was having such a nice day," he muttered, turning it around to reveal Margaret the Slitheen was the new mayor of Cardiff.

"Who is it?" Angel asked, looking between Rose and Mickey, who both seemed to recognize the woman.

"Yeah, who's the broad?" Jack agreed.

"Old enemy," the Doctor sighed, dropping the newspaper back into the old man's lap before turning and heading out, the group running after him.

Jack hung back, Rose and Mickey explaining what they knew about the woman while Angel joined the Doctor at his side, "I'm sorry," she murmured.

"What for?" he frowned, looking at her.

"I…had a feeling that we'd run into someone today, someone…familiar," she said, trying to find words to express what she'd felt, "But I thought it was just since Mickey was coming. I'm sorry I didn't tell you."

He nodded, taking her hand, "It's understandable."

She looked up at him, smiling at his understanding, squeezing his hand in thanks.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I LOVE Mickey! And I am SO excited for Angel to finally meet him. He'll be very important to Angel. We can see it starting here with how comfortable she is around him. It's my opinion that, even here, she can just feel like he'll be something more than just Rose's friend to her. I can't wait till you all see their relationship progress :) 
> 
> I know there wasn't much Time Lord goodness in this chapter (darn Margaret lol) but I really do want to give more background of what is happening while the Time Lords are otherwise occupied :) I can promise you this though, next chapter we'll see a little bit more of 'jealous' Doctor popping up, along with our favorite Time Lords bestowing nicknames upon each other that I think you'll enjoy. Also though, to sort of make up for the non-Time Lord scenes, I'm going to try to put at least one original scene/moment into almost every episode :)


	17. Boom Town: To Capture a Slitheen

The five of them walked up the steps of town hall on a mission, entering and walking up the steps of the entrance hall as if they owned the place. They stopped and glanced around.

"According to intelligence," Jack winked at Rose and Mickey, "The target is the last surviving member of the Slitheen family, a criminal sect from the planet Raxacoricofallapatorious, masquerading as a human being, zipped inside a skin suit. Ok, plan of attack: we assume a basic 57/56 strategy, covering all available exits on the ground floor. Doctor, you go face-to-face, that'll designate Exit One, I'll cover Exit Two, Rose, you're Exit Three, Mickey Smith…"

"And me!" Angel called, looping an arm through Mickey's.

Mickey cast a quick glance over at the Doctor, _swearing_ he heard a sort of _growl_ come from the man. He couldn't help but laugh silently, the man was _so gone_ about Angel and didn't even seem to realize. So, he just secured his arm with Angel's more, if the Doctor could run off with his girl, why couldn't he run off with the Doctor's, even if it was just for setting up a trap?

Jack smiled, "You two take Exit Four. Have you got that?"

The Doctor eyed the man in surprise as Rose struggled to understand what he was going on about, "Excuse me," the Doctor cut in, "Who's in charge?"

Jack grinned sheepishly, "Sorry. Awaiting orders, sir."

"Right," the Doctor nodded, his voice deepening with authority, "Here's the plan…" he paused and beamed, "Like he said. Nice plan. Anything else?"

"Present arms," Jack commanded as they each brought out their mobile phones, shouting 'Ready!' All except Angel as Mickey had her covered, "Speed dial?" they each pressed a button.

"Yup," the Doctor nodded.

"Ready," Rose grinned.

"Check..." Mickey laughed.

"...mate," Angel finished for him jokingly.

"See ya in hell," Jack said with a lazy grin before moving right. The Doctor and Rose headed off to different exits straight ahead while Mickey hesitated.

"This way," Angel tugged him gently, pulling him to the left, making Mickey smile.

For some reason, he was still half expecting Angel to call him an idiot or make some sort of remark that made him feel like he was, just like the Doctor tended to do. He hadn't met any other Time Lords, how was he to know what they were like? But Angel...she didn't sound like the Doctor at all. It wasn't just the fact that she talked at a normal speed and didn't use all those fancy temporal terms or whatever they were...it was that she explained things in a way he could understand. She seemed to realize when the humans around her weren't following and at least try to help them along and she wasn't afraid to admit she didn't have the slightest clue what the Doctor was talking about either, he'd noticed as they'd sat for lunch that she didn't seem to quite get certain phrases or actions. He'd made a comment to Jack, who'd made another 'whatever' sign and Angel had asked why he kept making a W, and offered him her water, which had made them all chuckle, which made him realize it was a fairly common situation with the girl. HE'D offered to explain it to her, which she'd appreciated, and it made him feel smart, to be able to help someone else understand humans. He'd tried to explain it as best he could, much like she had explained the TARDIS's cloaking thing. He understood it when she explained it, she'd done it without insulting his intelligence, which was always a plus. And there was the way that she'd smiled at him when he gotten that she was a Time Lady from just her name, she'd seemed actually impressed with _him_. Mickey Smith!

She was just encouraging was all, and it really meant a lot to him that she'd designated herself as his partner for this little mission of theirs. The Doctor, well...he had to admit the man was impressive, Rose certainly seemed to think so. But...the way Angel looked at HIM...it made him feel like he was pretty impressive too, and he was just a human.

It was nice.

~8~

The Doctor strode over to the secretary behind the desk beside the mayor's office, "Hello! I've come to see the Lord Mayor."

"Have you got an appointment?" the man looked up.

"Nope, just an old friend passing by, bit of a surprise, can't wait to see her face!"

"Well, she's just having a cup of tea."

"Just go in there, and tell her the Doctor would like to see her."

"Doctor who?"

"Just the Doctor. Tell her exactly that. The Doctor."

The secretary stood up resignedly, "Hold on a tick..." he entered the office, leaving the Doctor standing there expectantly with his hands behind his back, not even flinching when a teacup broke inside the office. The secretary came back out, slightly flushed, opening the door as little as possible before squeezing through it, "The Lord Mayor says thank you for...for popping by...she'd love to have a chat, but, um...she's up to her eyes in paperwork. Perhaps if you could make an appointment for next week..."

"She's climbing out of the window, isn't she?"

"Yes, she is."

The Doctor grinned, smug, and pushed past his way into the office, running across the floor to the open window and climbing out into the balcony, only to see Margaret jumping onto some scaffolding, "Slitheen heading North," he shouted into his phone.

"On my way!" Rose called.

"Over and out," Jack added.

"Oh my God," Mickey breathed, stunned.

He heard Angel giggle in the background, "Come on Mick!"

He turned, about to follow after Margaret, when the secretary rushed out and grabbed him, "Leave the Mayor alone!"

~8~

Rose dashed down a hall, pushing past two women in the process, knocking their paperwork out of their hands, before rushing out a door.

~8~

A tea lady shrieked as Jack did a running leap over her trolley as he ran down the corridor and out the door.

~8~

Mickey and Angel ran down a hall, Angel pulling Mickey to the right, just narrowly avoiding a cleaning trolley as they raced around the corner and outside, laughing at the close call.

~8~

The Doctor struggled to get the secretary off as Margaret leapt off the scaffolding to the ground, taking off her brooch as she ran. She turned, ready to make her escape, only to see Rose running towards her, blocking the way. She hissed angrily and pulled off an earring, turning to head the other way, but Jack ran towards her. Her eyes widened with shock as she turned back the way she came as the Doctor managed to climb down the scaffolding.

"Margaret!" he called, sounding almost sing-song.

She turned and quickly bolted down the last exit as fast as her fat little legs could carry her, pulling off her last earring just as Mickey and Angel burst out of the door to block her path. She glared, running faster towards them, shoving Angel roughly into the wall and carrying on, Mickey not even bothering with the woman as he ran to Angel's side to help her up as she cradled her arm.

"Mickey the idiot!" the Doctor called as he, Rose, and Jack rounded the corner to see the two of them there and Margaret running away.

"Oh, be fair, she's not exactly gonna outrun us, is she?" Rose commented.

But Margaret clipped her brooch and earrings together, vanishing in a blast of blue.

"She's got a teleport!" Jack shouted, "That's cheating! Now we're NEVER gonna get her!"

"Oh, the Doctor's very good with teleports."

The Doctor smirked, pulling out the sonic and clicking it on.

Margaret reappeared, running towards them.

The grin on her face faded when she realized she was back and stopped, turning to run the other way, pressing her teleport.

The Doctor clicked the sonic.

Margaret appeared, closer, running towards them.

She turned around and vanished again...

Only for the Doctor to make her reappear, almost right in front of them, exhausted, "I could do this all day."

"This is persecution," Margaret held her hands up in surrender, "Why can't you leave me alone? What did I ever do to you?"

"You tried to kill me and destroy this entire planet."

"Apart from that."

Jack walked forward and grabbed her arm, securing her, "Nice job everyone," he grinned.

"Yeah," the Doctor nodded, turning to look at Mickey and Angel, "Good…what's wrong?" he frowned and walked over to Angel, seeing her clutching the elbow of her left arm, wincing.

" _She_ shoved her into the wall," Mickey said, glaring at Margaret for hurting his new friend.

The Doctor gently took Angel's hand from Mickey's, stepping beside her a bit, closer, making Mickey step away to give him room as he straightened her arm and flashing it with the sonic, "Just bruised," he told her, reaching out to rub it gently, entirely focused on her injury instead of the alien being held back by the Time Agent behind him.

Mickey watched the interaction, _this_ was a new development. Last time the Doctor was there, he and Rose seemed…but now…he couldn't help but smile.

~8~

The quintet ushered Margaret into the exhibition room of the nuclear plant, "So, you're a Slitheen, you're on Earth, you're trapped," the Doctor said to her, "Your family get killed but you teleport out, just in the nick of time. You have no means of escape. What do you do? You build a nuclear power station," he nodded at a model of it on a table as Rose and Jack examined it with interest, "But what for?"

"A philanthropic gesture," she replied, "I've learnt the error of my ways."

"And it just so happens to be _right_ on top of the rift."

"What rift would that be?"

"A rift in space and time," Jack looked at her, "If this power station went into meltdown, the entire planet would go schwwwupboom!" he made an exaggerated exploding gesture.

The Doctor looked down at the model, "This station is designed to explode the minute it reaches capacity."

"Didn't anyone notice?" Rose shook her head, "Isn't there someone in London CHECKING this sort of stuff?"

"Of course they noticed," Angel replied, a bit distracted, frowning as she looked up at a banner for the plant along the back wall, staring at the words 'Blaidd Drwg,' "But do you think she'd let them talk?"

"Oh yes," the Doctor added sarcastically, glaring at Margaret, "You've truly learned."

"We're in CARDIFF," Margaret defended, trying to play her role down, "London doesn't care! The South Wales coast could fall into the sea and they wouldn't notice...oh...I sound like a Welshman. God help me, I've gone _native_."

"But why would she DO that?" Mickey frowned, "A great big explosion, she'd only end up killing herself."

"She's got a name, you know," Margaret glared at him.

"She's not even a she, she's a..."

"Raxacoricofallapatorian," Angel offered.

"Thing," Mickey went with, not about to even _try_ to pronounce that.

"Oh, but she's clever..." the Doctor eyed the woman a moment, before turning and prying the middle part off the model and turning it over to reveal a giant circuit board underneath, "Fantastic."

"Is that a tribophysical waveform macro-kinetic extrapolator?!" Jack looked at the board, eyes wide in excitement.

"Couldn't have put it better myself."

Jack took the board from him for a better look, "Ooh, GENIUS!"

The Doctor looked up at the group around him, all looking at the board except for Angel, who was looking at the banner for the project. He frowned, stepping beside her, caught by the words 'Blaidd Drwg' as well.

"You didn't build this," Jack looked at Margaret.

"I have my hobbies," Margaret waved him off, "A little tinkering..."

"No, no, no, I mean, you REALLY didn't build this. Way beyond you."

"I bet she stole it," Mickey remarked.

"It fell into my hands," Margaret agreed slightly.

"Is it a weapon?" Rose asked.

Jack placed the extrapolator down on the floor, "It's transport. You see, the reactor blows, the rift opens, phenomenal cosmic disaster, but THIS thing shrouds you in a force field, you have this energy bubble, zzhum, so you're safe. Then you feed it coordinates, stand on top," he moved on top of it, "And ride the concussion all the way out of the solar system."

"It's a surfboard!" Mickey exclaimed.

"A pan-dimensional surfboard, yeah."

"And it would've worked," Margaret muttered darkly, "I would've surfed away from this dead-end dump and back to civilization."

"You'd blow up a whole planet just to get a lift?" Mickey gaped, incredulous.

"Like stepping on an anthill."

"How'd you think of the name?" the Doctor asked, they turned to see him and Angel looking intently at the banner.

"What, 'Blaidd Drwg?' It's Welsh."

"I know, but how did you think of it?"

"Chose it at random, that's all I dunno. Just sounded good. Does it matter?"

"Blaidd Drwg," Angel breathed.

"What's it mean?" Rose frowned.

"Bad Wolf," the Doctor translated.

"But I've heard that before, Bad Wolf," Rose said, her eyes widening, scared, "I've heard that _lots_ of times..."

"Everywhere we go. Two words. Following us. Bad Wolf."

"How can they be following us?"

The Doctor stared, lost in thought, for a few seconds, before smiling, "Nah! Just a coincidence! Like hearing a word on the radio then hearing it all day. Never mind! Things to do," he clapped briskly, "Margaret, we're gonna take you home."

"Hold on, isn't that the _easy_ option, like letting her go?" Jack shook his head.

"I don't believe it!" Rose cheered excitedly, "We actually get to go to Raxa…" the Doctor rolled his eyes at her, "Wait a minute!" she cried, indignant, "Raxacor..."

"Raxacoricofallapatorius," the Doctor said quickly.

"Raxacorico…" Rose began.

"...fallapatorius," Angel finished, much more slowly than the Doctor, finally turning away from the banner.

Rose looked at her and nodded, "Raxacoricofallapatorius!" she screeched in delight.

"That's it!" Angel laughed.

"I did it!" Rose turned to Angel, holding up her hand to Angel, who just stared at it, confused. Rose rolled her eyes playfully and took Angel's hand, slapping it with her own in a high-five, making Angel smile, "Brilliant."

"They have the _death_ penalty," Margaret cut in, causing silence to fall and smiles to fade, "The family Slitheen was tried in its absence many years ago and found guilty. With no chance of appeal. According to the statutes of government, the moment I return, I am to be executed. What do you make of that, Doctor?" she looked at him with a hard look, "Take me home and you take me to my death."

"Not my problem," he remarked, indifferent.

Angel, however, just eyed Margaret with a small frown.

~8~

Margaret walked slowly through the TARDIS, staring wide eyed at everything, as they stood in it that night, "This ship is IMPOSSIBLE! It's SUPERB! How do you get the outside around the inside?"

"A magician never reveals their secrets," Angel said, before blinking and looking at Rose, "That's the right expression yeah?"

Rose nodded, making an 'ok' sign. The last time she'd tried to use a human expression she'd remarked that someone looked liked they'd seen a goat instead of ghost. And the time before that Jack had commented that it was time for the Doctor to 'get back on the horse' when he'd been trying to crack a lock on a door without the sonic, and Angel had asked if he was getting a pony and then asked if they could name it Arthur. But she had to admit, she loved Angel's little quirk when it came to expressions and picking up on cues, it aways made for interesting conversations and, in rather dire circumstances, made them all laugh and feel better.

Angel smiled and moved to crouch beside Jack, helping him hook up the extrapolator.

"I almost feel better about being defeated. We never stood a _chance_. This is the technology of _the gods_."

"Don't worship me, I'd make a very bad god," the Doctor replied, "You wouldn't get a day off, for starters...Jack, how we doing, big fella?"

Jack looked up, "This extrapolator's top of the range," he peered around at Margaret, "Where did you get it?"

"Oh, I don't know...some airlock sale..." she trailed.

"Must've been a great big heist. It's stacked with power."

"But we can use it for fuel?" the Doctor asked.

"It's not compatible enough..." Angel replied, standing up and brushing off her hands, "But," she smiled, "I know my TARDISes, bypassed a few circuits and it should take 12 hours off."

"Fantastic!" the Doctor smiled, moving to put an arm around her, half-hugging her.

See this, right here, _this_ was what made her fantastic! She claimed she was average, probably even on the lower marks in the Academy, but here...she was just _brilliant_. She was so great with the TARDIS, knowing just what needed fixing and how to do it, how to handle the box when things went wrong. She'd fixed things he hadn't even known had been broken and pointed out that he'd been leaving the brakes on since his first trip, which created the funny wheezing noise that always sounded whenever the TARDIS took off. He'd blushed a bit at that and gone to turn the brakes off when she'd grabbed his hand, telling him to leave it. It wasn't damaging the TARDIS and it made the box and its arrival all the more unique, like him.

She really was just brilliant when it came to TARDISes, time travel, space, history...completely lost in science and math and a score of other subjects, but he really enjoyed their talks at night, or when the humans went off to do their own things, where he'd explain some things she didn't understand. She'd always look even more lost by the end of it, having even less understanding than when he'd first started talking, but she'd just smile and say it was a good thing she had him around.

He liked that.

He liked being the person she depended on for some things.

It was nice that she found him intelligent and a good person and liked having him around...

"We'll be ready to go by morning then," he shook himself from his thoughts.

"So we're here for the night?" Rose asked.

" _I'm_ in no hurry…" Margaret commented.

"We've got a prisoner!" Rose smiled, a little excited, "The police box is really...a police box."

Margaret gave her an sneering smile in return, "You're not _just_ police, though. Since you're taking me to my death that makes _you_ my executioners. Each and every one of you..."

"Well, you deserve it," Mickey said coldly.

"You're very quick to say so," she turned to him, "You're very quick to soak your hands in my blood. Which makes you better than me, _how_ , exactly?"

Mickey was silent.

She smirked, "Long night ahead..."

"You might as well stop now," Angel commented, setting something into the console to feed to Jack as the alien sat primly on the captain's chair, "You won't change our minds."

"Really?" Margaret raised an eyebrow, "Let's see who can look me in the eye."

She looked right at Mickey with a calm, collected gaze and he held it for a few seconds, before looking away.

Next she turned to Rose who just glanced guiltily at the Doctor who glanced up a moment before focusing on his work.

And then she turned her gaze on Angel as she turned to lean against the side of the console, staring her dead in the eye.

"You'll be going home," Angel told her calmly, "One way or the other."

Margaret frowned, trying to hold her gaze, only to look away herself at the horrible _knowing_ look in the woman's eyes…she was _certain_ of Margaret's return…and the fact that _one_ of them was shook her more than she wanted to admit.

~8~

Mickey stood alone outside the TARDIS, in front of the water feature, when Rose stepped up beside him, "S'freezing out here!" she commented.

"Better than in there," he nodded at the TARDIS, "She _does_ deserve it. She's a _Slitheen_. I don't care. It's...it's just...weird, in that box."

Rose grinned tentatively, "I didn't _really_ need my passport..."

Mickey grinned broadly at that, she'd just wanted to see him. She nudged him playfully and he nudged her back, "I've been thinking. You know...we could...go and have a drink. Have a pizza or something. Just you and me."

"That'd be nice."

"And, I mean, if the TARDIS can't leave until morning, we could…" he trailed as Rose nodded, listening, he looked down, slightly bashful, "...go to a hotel? Spend the night? I mean, if you _want_ to! I…I've got some money."

She smiled, "Ok. Yeah."

"Is that alright?"

She laughed, "Yeah!"

He grinned wider, "Cool. There's a couple of bars around here, we should give 'em a go," he nodded at the TARDIS, "Do you have to go and tell 'em?"

"It's none of their business," Rose remarked, taking his hand and leading him off.

~8~

In the TARDIS Angel smiled gently, watching them walk off on the monitor, she could tell Mickey really cared about Rose and it was nice to see them acting sweet like that. She could tell, he was an incredible man. There was just… _something_ about him…

"I gather it's not always like this...having to wait," Margaret muttered darkly as she sat on the grilling her back to them working at the console, "I bet you're always the first to leave, Doctor. Never mind the consequences, off you go. You butchered my family and then ran for the stars, am I right? But not this time. At last, you have consequences...how does it feel?"

"I didn't butcher them," the Doctor replied.

"Don't answer back," Jack commented.

"That's what she wants," Angel agreed.

"I didn't!" the Doctor turned to them, _needing_ them, needing _her_ , to understand he _hadn't_ slaughtered the family.

Angel smiled softly and walked over to him, placing a hand on his as it rested tensely on a lever, squeezing it in understanding.

He smiled at her as she walked past him to stand on the other side of him, working on the console, before he called to Margaret, "What about you? You had an emergency teleport, you didn't zap them to safety, did you?"

"It only carries one," she said, "I had to fly without coordinates. I ended up on a skip in the Isle of Dogs," the boys chuckled, "It wasn't funny!"

"Sorry," the Doctor remarked. Margaret turned around to see them both grinning, "It is a BIT funny!"

The boys started laughing again, Margaret actually joining in, "Do I get a last request?"

"Depends what it is," the Doctor replied, his humor gone.

"I grew quite fond of my little human life. All those rituals...the brushing of the teeth, and the complicated way they cook things...there's a little restaurant. Just round the bay. It became quite a favorite of mine."

He walked towards her, leaning over the railing to talk to her properly, "Is that what you want? A last meal?"

"Don't I have _rights_?"

"Oh, like she's _not_ gonna try to escape," Jack rolled his eyes.

"Except I can never escape the Doctor, so where's the danger?" she countered darkly, before turning to the Doctor as though assessing a challenger, "But I wonder if you _could_ do it? To sit with a creature you're about to _kill_ and take supper. How strong is your stomach?"

"Strong enough," he stated.

"I wonder. I've seen you fight your enemies...now dine with them."

"You won't change my mind."

"Prove it."

The Doctor turned and walked away, tempted, "There are people out there. If you slip away just for one second, they'll be in danger."

"Except...I've got these," Jack held up a pair of metal bracelets, "You both wear one. If she moves more than ten feet away..." he made a loud buzzing noise, mimicking electric shock, causing Margaret to jump, startled, "She gets zapped by ten thousand volts."

The Doctor grinned and spun around, "Margaret, would you like to come out to dinner? My treat?"

"Dinner in bondage...works for me," Margaret stood.

"Alright Jack," the Doctor nodded at him, taking the bracelets, "Keep an eye on the TARDIS," he slipped a bracelet on and tossed one to Margaret, watching her put it on before turning to Angel and holding out his arm, "Shall we?"

She blinked, "You want _me_ to come?"

"I know Margaret," he replied quietly, "She'll definitely try something, better to have a precog with me."

And...he didn't want to leave her alone with Jack...well...with other men in general. He'd felt a rather odd sense of irritation with Mickey earlier, much more than his typical 'Mickey the Idiotic Human' irritation. Every time Angel so much as talked to the boy or looked at him or even stood by him had just...he didn't know, but he jaw tensed, and his hands clenched, and his eyes narrowed and he felt the insane desire to pull her away from the boy and, admittedly, he'd tried to do so quite a few times. He just...didn't really know _why_...

She frowned a bit, "But I'm not a precog. I just get feelings from time to time."

"Then go with them," he smiled at her, "Trust them. Trust me."

She looked as though she were about to argue but...this was _the Doctor_. He wasn't like her friends in the Academy, the other Time Lords. She had to remind herself that she _didn't_ have to hide her feelings from him, she didn't have to hide _anything_ anymore. It was a nice change. She couldn't even remember the last time she'd been able to just let herself feel completely, to not try to bury the sensations she would get.

She smiled, took a breath, and nodded, "Alright. I'll _try_."

That would be an experiment and a half. She'd never really _actively_ tried to feel something before, usually it just happened...she wasn't even sure if she _could_ get a sensation that way.

But she'd try.

For the Doctor.

He beamed, "Fantastic," and then dashed off to the door where Margaret was waiting and let her out, stepping out with her, "Come on psychic!" he shouted back to her.

"Oi, watch it thief!" she countered with a laugh, running after him.

* * *

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hmmm...psychic? Thief? Cute don't you think? Not the last we'll hear of that, not by a long shot :) And, as always, there's definitely more to their nicknames for each other than it seems at first :)
> 
> We all know what's coming next, the infamous 'date' though it doesn't look much like it'll be a 'date' between the Doctor and Margaret anymore does it? :)
> 
> As for the Doctor's confusion with what he's feeling. There's definitely an explanation behind it, but we won't see what it is till 10 comes along :)


	18. Boom Town: A Last Meal

As the Doctor, Angel, and Margaret sat down to dinner, Jack worked away on the TARDIS, setting up the extrapolator and trying to knock a few more hours off, while Rose and Mickey enjoyed their time together just wandering aimlessly near the water.

"Here we are, out on a date, and you haven't even asked my proper name," Margaret replied as they looked at their menus.

"It's not a date!" the Doctor shouted at her, "At least not with you," he muttered, casting a quick glance at Angel, who was looking at her menu, before sighing, "What's your name then?"

"Blon. I am Blon Fel Fotch Passameer-Day Slitheen. That's what it'll say on my death certificate."

"Nice to meet you, Blon," Angel replied, still eyeing her menu.

"I'm sure," Margaret sneered before peering out the window, "Look...that's where I was living as Margaret..."

The Doctor paused before turning to look around, out the window with Angel. He KNEW Margaret would try something while his back was turned. He knew _all about_ the Raxacoricofallapatorians ever since they'd run into the Slitheen the first time, brushed up on his alien species. He was pretty sure he had a grip on all the tricks Margaret might try on him, he was prepared...but this wasn't about _him_. He knew what was coming, because he knew the Slitheen, Angel though, didn't. She didn't recognize them, she didn't know their species all that well, she had no idea...and that was _perfect_. He'd noticed her hesitating still with her feelings and sensations, this was _just_ what she needed to try and push herself, get herself comfortable with them again.

She was just so extraordinary, but she just couldn't seem to see it no matter what he said. Her sensations were a gift, a fantastic one! One she truly _needed_ to embrace. He knew it would be a long road to get her to that point, she'd told him of her life on Gallifrey, of just how long she had been trying to bury the feelings inside her, but it was a journey he was fully intent to see through to the end with her, helping her along the way. This was just the first step. He'd encouraged her to try to _let_ herself feel what might be coming, if she did, well that would be _brilliant_! If not, he was prepared to deal with any tricks Margaret might try to pull on them.

But, as he glanced at Angel out of the corner of his eye as she stared at the building Margaret had pointed out, he _saw_ it...that expression on her face that told him she was most definitely feeling _something_.

It was all he could do to keep from grinning.

"Nice little flat," Margaret continued, "Over there. On the top. Next to the one with the light on," she quickly opened her ring and emptied some sort of powder into his wine, "Two bedrooms...bayside view..." they turned back a moment after she'd finished, "I was rather content. Don't suppose I'll see it again."

Angel peered at the Doctor's glass before she reached out and swapped it with Margaret's.

The Doctor nodded his thanks to her before turning to Margaret, "Suppose not."

"Thank you," Margaret glared at the girl as the Doctor and Angel went back to the menus.

"You're welcome," the girl replied, as though Margaret had truly been thanking her.

"Tell me then, Doctor," Margaret turned back to him, "What do you know of our species?"

"Only what I've seen," he replied, it wa a lie, but Margaret didn't need to know that.

"Did you know, for example, in extreme cases, when her life is in danger, a female Raxacoricofallapatorian can manufacture a poison dart within her own finger…" she pointed her finger at him, a dart flying out its tip...

Only to bounce off a plate that Angel held in front of the Doctor's face so quickly even _she_ looked shocked that she'd done it.

"Apparently," the Doctor beamed at Angel as she blinked and slowly put the plate back down, "She did."

Margaret frowned, "And one more thing...between you and me…" she cast a furtive look around the restaurant before leaning in, as did he, "As a final resort, the excess poison can be exhaled through the lungs," she took a breath to release a green gas from her mouth...

When a breadstick was half-shoved into it.

She gagged as Angel sat back, wiping the crumbs off on her napkin.

"Fantastic," the Doctor cried with a proud look at Angel, causing her to blush, burying her face in the menu. He laughed, "Now then, what d'you think? Mmm, steak looks nice. Steak and chips!"

Margaret opened her menu, glaring at it as she chewed the bread, as the Doctor and Angel shared a small excited smile, the Doctor practically beaming!

He hadn't expected her to feel so much, maybe sense one thing, but all this...either Angel was growing more confident in her abilities quickly...or her sensations were stronger than he thought they were.

He looked at Angel softly, he was betting on the second notion.

~8~

Rose and Mickey walked down a set of steps near the bay, Rose just chattering away enthusiastically as Mickey tried to seem like he was interested, but it was difficult to hear her prattling on about another man, even if she was also talking about Angel as well, "The Doctor took us to this planet a while back. It was much colder than this, they called it 'Woman Wept.' The planet was actually _called_ 'Woman Wept.' 'Cos, if you looked at it, right, from above, there's like this huge continent, like all curved round...sort of looked like a woman, you know...lamenting. Oh my God, and we went to this beach, right, no people, no buildings, just this beach like, a thousand miles across! We were just walking along it when Angel just stopped and looked out at the sea, and something happened, something to do with the sun, I don't know, but the sea had just _frozen_! Like, in a split second in the middle of a storm, right, waves and foam, just frozen! All the way out to the horizon. Midnight, right, we walk underneath these waves a hundred feet tall, made of _ice_."

"I'm going out with Trisha Delaney," he cut in, leaning against the railing to look at the water.

Rose stared at him in shock, "Right...that's nice...Trisha from the shop?"

"Yeah, Rob Delany's sister."

"Well, she's nice...she's a bit BIG..."

"She lost weight," Mickey said, looking at her as though to justify himself, "You've been away."

"Well, good for you…she's…nice…"

Mickey smiled, more relaxed, "So, tell us more about this planet, then."

"That was it, really..." Rose trailed as they turned and walked in silence, now worlds apart.

~8~

"Public execution is a slow death," Margaret said quietly, now openly pleading, "They prepare a thin acetic acid...lower me into the cauldron...and boil me. The acidity is perfectly gauged to strip away the skin. Internal organs fall out into the liquid. And I become soup. And still alive. Still screaming."

"No different than the middle ages then?" Angel asked, eating a bit of her chips, "Public, painful, prolonged."

She didn't know why, but she just liked history. Space and time, the two areas of the Academy she excelled in, history. She loved learning about different periods of history, especially the Earth's Middle Ages. Perhaps it was the notion of the 'knight in shining armor' of the fairytales, but she found the sense of chivalry and honor outstanding. And, she supposed, it touched a bit closer to home now, the Doctor truly was her knight in shining armor.

"I don't make the law," the Doctor shrugged in agreement, to each its own.

"But you deliver it," Margaret argued, "Will you stay to watch?"

"What else can we do?"

"The Slitheen family's huge. There's a lot more of us, all scattered off-world. Take me to them. Take me somewhere safe."

"But you'll start again if we do," Angel argued.

"I _promise_ I _won't_."

"You've been in that skin-suit too long," the Doctor said, "You've forgotten. There used to be a REAL Margaret Blaine. You killed her and stripped her and used the skin. You're pleading for mercy out of a dead woman's lips."

"Perhaps I _have_ got used to it. A human life. An ordinary life. That's _all_ I'm asking," the Doctor fixed her under his gaze, "Give me a chance, Doctor...I _can_ change."

"I don't believe you."

"Neither do I," Angel added sadly, "At least...not as you are now."

Margaret sighed defeated.

~8~

Rose stood by a railing, looking out at the water, as Mickey sat with his back to her on a bench, "So, what d'you wanna do now?" he asked.

"Don't mind," she muttered.

"We could ask about hotels..."

"What would _Trisha Delaney_ say?" she cut in.

"S'pose," he shrugged, looking around and pointing, "There's a bar down there with a Spanish name or something…"

Rose suddenly spun to him, angry, "You don't even LIKE Trisha Delaney!"

"Oh, is that right? What the hell do _you_ know?"

"I know YOU, and I know her, and I know that's NEVER gonna happen. So who do you think you're kidding?!"

"At least I know where _she_ is!"

She nodded, now understanding, "There we are, then. It's got nothing to do with Trisha. This is all about _me_ , isn't it?"

"You LEFT me!" he shouted, standing up in a fury, "We were _nice_. We were _happy_. And then what, you give me a kiss and you run off with _him_ and you make me feel like _nothing,_ Rose. I was nothing," Rose stared at him as his eyes began to fill with tears, "I can't even go out with a stupid girl from a shop because you pick up the phone and I come running. I mean, is _that_ what I am, Rose? Standby?" she shook her head, "Am I just supposed to sit here for the rest of my life, waiting for you? Because I will."

"I'm sorry," she said softly, trying to touch his arm but he shook her off.

~8~

"I promise you, I've _changed_ since we last met, Doctor," Margaret continued, "There was this girl...just today...young thing. Something of a danger. She was getting too close. I felt the blood lust rising, just as the family taught me, I was going to kill her without a thought. And then...I stopped. She's alive somewhere right now, she's walking around this city because I CAN change, I DID change. I know I can't prove it…"

"I believe you," the Doctor said calmly.

"Then you _know_ I'm capable of better."

"It doesn't mean anything though," Angel added.

"I _spared_ her _life_!"

"You let one of them go, but that's nothing new," the Doctor waved her off, "Every now and then, a little victim's spared. Because she smiled...because he's got freckles...'cos they begged...and _that's_ how you live with yourself. _That's_ how you slaughter millions. Because, once in a while, on a whim, if the wind's in the right direction...you _happen_ to be kind."

"Only a _killer_ would know that," she said coldly.

There was no answer as the Doctor looked at her, thrown.

"Is that right? From what I've seen, your happy-go-lucky little life leaves devastation in its wake. Always moving on 'cos you dare not look back. Playing with so many peoples' lives, you might as well be a god."

The Doctor looked away, slightly hurt, when someone took his hand. He looked down to see Angel holding his hand, squeezing it comfortingly and he smiled, if he was a god, she was definitely an angel, _his_ angel. He blinked a bit, startled at that thought that had just filtered through his mind. Where had that come from?

"And you're right, Doctor...you're absolutely right. Sometimes...you let one go," Margaret looked into the Doctor's eyes, tears in her own, "Let _me_ go."

The Doctor stared at her, at a loss, not sure what to do. He looked over at Angel, only to see her wince and rub her head with the hand not holding his own, "You alright?" he asked her quietly.

"Yeah," she waved him off, though the frown on her face remained, "Just…" she shook her head, unable to find words, before she winced again, pulling her hand away from his to massage her temples.

~8~

Rose and Mickey sat side by side on the bench, Rose stroking Mickey's hands as he spoke, "I'm not asking you to leave them, because I know that's not fair. But I just need _something_ , yeah? Some sort of promise that when you DO come back, you're coming back for me."

Rose suddenly spun around, hearing a low rumbling in the distance, "Is that thunder?"

"Does it matter?" Mickey asked, stunned that she would be distracted by _that_ in the middle of him trying to rebuild their relationship.

"That's _not_ thunder…"

~8~

"In the family Slitheen, we had no choice," Margaret cut in, trying to get the Doctor's attention back, "I was made to carry out my first kill at thirteen. If I'd refused, my father would have fed me to the Venom Grubs. If I'm a killer, it's because I was born to kill, it's all I know!"

The Doctor, though, was looking at Angel intently as she frowned, staring outside.

"Doctor? Are you even LISTENING to me?"

"Can you hear that?" Angel asked quietly.

"I'm _begging_ for my _life_ …"

"No, listen, shush..." the Doctor held up a hand to silence her, hearing the low rumbling as well. He looked over at the glasses on the table that began to shake.

Suddenly Angel winced again, a moment before the glass windows shattered.

~8~

A streetlight smashed, causing passersbys to shriek.

Baffled, Mickey looked around for Rose, only to see she was already running back to the TARDIS, "Oh, go on then, run!" he shouted after her, bitter, _hurt_ , "It's him again, isn't it? It's the Doctor! It's _always_ the Doctor! It's always gonna _be_ the Doctor and it's never ME!"

No one _ever_ picked _him_.

~8~

The Doctor held tight to Angel's hand as they ran down a flight of stairs, Margaret behind them, the sound of screaming and smashing all around them.

"The handcuffs!" Margaret shouted.

The Doctor waited at the foot of the stairs for her, pulling off her handcuff, but grabbing her wrist with his free hand, "Don't think you're running away."

"Oh, I'm sticking with you," she said, terrified, as they ran off towards the TARDIS, "Some date this turned out to be!"

They ran, pushing through people, down another set of steps to Roald Dahl Plass only to see the TARDIS with a huge bolt of lightning shooting out of the top.

"It's the rift!" the Doctor shouted as storm clouds gathered around it, "The rift's opening!"

~8~

Jack panicked as sparks flew out of the console, the extrapolator flashing madly as he ripped out the wires connecting it.

~8~

The Doctor, Angel, and Margaret hurried across the square, the ground starting to crack around them. Margaret looked truly scared as the Doctor fished for the key and put it in the lock, pulling them both inside to see the whole ship shaking and the lights blinking.

"What the hell are you doing?!" the Doctor demanded to Jack, as he ran to the man's side.

Angel _just_ reached the console before another sharp pain in her head brought her to her knees beside it.

"It just went crazy!" Jack shouted.

"It's the rift! Time and space are ripping apart. The whole city's gonna disappear!"

A small explosion erupted from the console.

~8~

Rose ran across Roald Dahl Plass, stopping short at the sight of the TARDIS, before she flinched at another rumble, running across it again and jumping into the box as more explosions erupted from the console, Jack and the Doctor working furiously.

"It's the extrapolator!" Jack shouted, "I've disconnected it but it's still feeding off the engine! It's USING the TARDIS, I can't stop it!"

"Never mind Cardiff, it's gonna rip open the planet!" the Doctor called.

"What is it?" Rose slammed the door behind her, "What's happening?!"

"Oh, just little ME!" Margaret beamed gleefully.

"Rose run!" Angel shouted.

But it was too late.

Margaret ripped the arm off her skin suit to reveal her claw and grabbed Rose by the neck. The Doctor darted forward but Margaret moved back threateningly, "One wrong move and she snaps like a promise."

"I might've known," he remarked.

"I've had you bleating all night, poor baby, now shut it," Margaret inched closer with Rose before turning to Jack, "You, fly boy, put the extrapolator at my feet."

Jack hesitated a moment as Margaret squeezed Rose tighter. He looked at the Doctor for help but he could only nod. So Jack placed the board down.

"Thank you. Just as I planned."

"I thought you needed to blow up the nuclear power station," Rose gasped out.

"Failing that, if I were to be...arrested, then anyone capable of tracking me down would have considerable technology of their own. Therefore, they would be captivated by the extrapolator. Especially a magpie mind like yours, Doctor. So the extrapolator was programmed to go to Plan B!" she pulled one of Rose's braids roughly, causing the girl to whimper, "To lock onto the nearest alien power source and open the rift," she looked around at the TARDIS in awe, "And what a power source it found...I'm back on schedule...thanks to you."

"The rift's gonna convulse, she'll destroy the whole planet," Jack said.

"And you with it!" she cried, victorious, pushing Rose aside to stand on the extrapolator, though still keeping hold of her neck, "While I ride this board over the crest of the inferno all the way to freedom. Stand back...surf's up."

Angel gasped softly, feeling a warmth spreading through her back through the panel she sat before. She looked to her right, reaching out and gently placing her hand against the panel. Right above it, the top of the console burst open and a blinding golden light flooded out.

Margaret looked at it in surprise and then to the Doctor on the other side of the console, "Of course, opening the rift means you'll pull this ship apart," the Doctor reasoned calmly.

"So sue me."

"It's not just any old power source. It's the TARDIS. _My_ TARDIS. The best ship in the Universe."

"It'll make wonderful scrap."

"What's that light?" Rose struggled to see.

"The Heart of the TARDIS," Angel breathed, slowly pushing herself up as she stood beside the open panel, "TARDISes, they aren't _just_ ships, they're _alive_ ," she looked around, " _She's_ alive. And now," she looked at the light a moment before turning her gaze back at Margaret, "Her soul is open."

Breathing heavily, Margaret stared into the light, drawn to it, "It's...so bright..."

"Look at it, Margaret..." the Doctor said softly.

"...beautiful..."

"Look inside, Blon Fel Fotch. Look at the light."

Margaret stared, hypnotized, her grip on Rose relaxing enough for Angel to pull her away and to her side, checking that her neck was ok as Rose nodded she was fine. They watched as a blissful smile spread over Margaret's face as she looked up at the Doctor, "Thank you…" she whispered, genuine.

The light slowly engulfed Margaret, forcing them to look away...

When it cleared her body suit fell to the ground on top of the extrapolator.

The Doctor sprang forward, "Don't look, stay there, close your eyes!" he slammed down a few levers and the gap in the console closed, shutting out the light, "Now, Jack, come on, shut it all down. Shut down!" Jack rushed over to the console as well, "Rose, that panel over there, turn all the switches to the right. Angel…" she just nodded turning to one of the panels and twisting a few knobs. They worked quickly, the console exploding with sparks before the shaking lessened and everything settled back down, "Nicely done. Thank you all."

"What happened to Margaret?" Rose asked, looking around.

"Must've got burnt up," Jack guessed, "Carried out her own death sentence."

"No," Angel said, kneeling beside the skin suit, "I don't think she's dead."

"Then, where'd she go?" Rose shook her head.

"She looked into the Heart of the TARDIS," the Doctor explained as Angel gingerly reached inside the skin suit, "And even _I_ don't know how strong that is. And the ship's telepathic, like I told you, Rose. Gets inside your head. Translates alien languages. Maybe the raw energy can translate all sorts of thoughts…"

They watched as Angel pulled out what looked like an egg with a few tentacles on the top, "Here we go," she murmured, smiling softly.

"She's an egg?" Rose's eyes widened.

"Regressed to her childhood," the Doctor nodded.

"She's an egg?" Jack repeated.

"She can start again!" he beamed, "Live her life from scratch. If we take her home, give her to a different family, tell 'em to bring her up properly, she might be alright!"

"Or she might be worse."

"That's her choice."

"She's an egg…" Rose repeated.

"She's an egg."

"I _did_ say one way or another," Angel smiled up at them, before looking around, "Hold on…where's Mickey?"

Rose's eyes widened, "Oh, my God. Mickey!" she turned and ran out of the TARDIS.

"Does she do that often?" Angel asked the Doctor and Jack.

"Do what?" the Doctor asked.

"Leave Mickey and not even realize," she elaborated.

The Doctor paused in thought, never really considering it from that point of view, before frowning, "Yeah."

Angel nodded sadly, standing up with the egg as Jack grabbed the skin suit to get rid of it. She paused, glancing at the doors, just...feeling like Rose wouldn't be coming back with Mickey, which made her frown, she rather liked the boy.

~8~

Rose ran back to the water, looking around at the damage, trying to find Mickey, only to see him nowhere. She turned to a paramedic, fearing the worst, only for them to shake their head at her. She sighed and walked back to the TARDIS, not sure where to check next…not even noticing Mickey watching her the whole time before walking off himself.

~8~

Rose stepped into the TARDIS to see the Doctor fiddling with the console as was Jack, Angel trying to fix a few things that had been damaged and couldn't help the stabbing of guilt she felt in her gut at the sight of the woman. _Angel_ had noticed Mickey's absence before _she_ had…what sort of girlfriend, what sort of _friend_ , was she if she could just run off and abandon him and not even think twice about it?

He didn't deserve that.

"We're all powered up," the Doctor called, seeing her, "We can leave. Opening the rift filled us up with energy, we can go. If that's alright..."

"Yeah, fine," she said softly, tears in her eyes.

"How's Mickey?" Angel asked carefully, though there was concern in her voice.

Rose swallowed hard, "He's ok. He's gone."

"D'you wanna go and find him?" the Doctor suggested, having formed a new sort of opinion of the young man given Angel's outlook on it all. As he'd said to Nancy only a few short trips ago, it wasn't easy being the only kid out in the cold, "We'll wait..."

"No need," Rose shook her head sadly, "He deserves better."

"Off we go, then," the Doctor said briskly, getting to work, "Always moving on..."

Angel pulled a lever by her, starting the engines.

"Next stop, Raxacoricofallapatorius," Jack smirked, "Now you don't often get to say _that_."

Angel just rested a hand on the egg she'd placed on the console to keep warm, smiling.

"We'll just stop by and pop her in the hatchery. Margaret the Slitheen can live her life again! A second chance."

"That'd be nice…" Rose muttered to herself, staring into space as the TARDIS flew off.

~8~

"How's the damage?" the Doctor asked, watching as Angel double checked everything on the console after they'd dropped off Margaret. She was trying to make sure Margaret's extrapolator hadn't done any permanent harm.

"It may take a while," she admitted, "But I'll have her fixed up no problem."

He beamed, "Fant...ahh...stic!" though his word stretched at the end as he actually yawned in the middle of it.

She laughed, "Off to bed you."

"What about you?"

"I just want to fix this," she tweaked a random lever that seemed to have half-fused to the console, "It's something you _definitely_ want working."

"Of course," he nodded, before looking at her, bashful, "And it is…"

"Emergency brake," she rolled her eyes at him, "Shouldn't take me long. So, off you pop," he shook his head at her but turned to leave anyway, glancing back at the top of the gantry to see her working away, before heading through the door.

Angel looked up as soon as the door shut, waiting a few moments to make sure he'd really gone, before sighing. She walked around the console, before eyeing the panel that held the Heart of the TARDIS for a moment before hesitantly reaching out to place her hand on top of it, feeling a warmth immediately swirl beneath it. She started to smile at the sensation before blinking and shaking her head, pulling her hand away quickly. She knelt down and pulled a small cylinder like object with a few notches in it out from under one of the small compartments beneath the console, looking at it contemplatively before getting to work.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What's Angel doing? Well, we've only six more chapters to find out. OMG! 6! So sad, but then we get 10 and the fluff/relationship will REALLY pick up :)
> 
> A bit more of a hint to a 'source' of Angel's abilities here. Keep in mind, it's a hint, and, as mentioned before, there are layers to her abilities, theories the Doctor has that will either be proved true, false, or as a component of Angel's true 'special'ness, and there'll definitely be more semi-explanations for them and what she may/not be able to do with them in the future :)
> 
> One line, one line that means so much more than you might think. 'No one ever picked him.' Oh Mickey Smith, you silly boy, you couldn't be more wrong :) Just you wait Mickey, your day will come :)


	19. Bad Wolf: Play or Die

The Doctor was curled up inside a rather small room, almost like a cupboard, before it started spinning and spinning…he leapt to his feet, frantically feeling the walls for a way out, "What is it? What's happening?"

Unexpectedly, he found a door and fell through it, landing flat on his face on the carpeted room of a brightly decorated house.

"Oh my God!" a young woman called, rushing to his side, "I don't BELIEVE it! Why'd they put you in there?! They never said you were coming!"

He tried to pull himself up, very disoriented, "But what happened? I was..."

She helped steady him, "Careful now...oh!" his legs gave way under him and he fell back to the floor again, "Oh! Mind yourself! Oh, that's the transmat. Scrambles your head, I was sick for _days_ ," he tried to push himself up and she helped, "You alright?" he grunted, managing to remain standing this time, "So! What's your name then sweetheart?"

"The Doctor, I think," he replied, shaking his head, trying to clear it, "I was er...I don't know, what happened? How…" he looked at her, concerned.

"You got _chosen_ ," she told him, grinning, as though it explained everything.

"Chosen for what?"

"You're a house mate. You're in the house! Isn't that brilliant?!"

"That's not fair," another man complained. They looked over to see a young man and a black woman standing by a purple sofa in front of a TV, "We've got eviction in five minutes! I've been here for all nine weeks, I've followed the rules, I haven't had a _single_ warning, and then _he_ comes swanning in…"

"If they keep changing the rules, I'm gonna protest, I am," the other girl stated, "You just watch me, I'm…I'm gonna paint the walls."

The Doctor looked around, completely bewildered, open mouthed, his brow furrowed.

"Would the Doctor please come to the Diary Room?" a mechanical echoed.

He looked up at the ceiling, as though trying to see where the voice came from, before turning around as something buzzed behind him. A silver door with a glowing eye on it swung open, waiting for him. He slowly walked over and went inside the Diary Room, plunking himself down on a modern red chair.

"You are live on channel 44,000. Please do not swear."

He scoffed, "You have GOT to be kidding."

~8~

Rose blinked blearily as she woke up on the floor of a dark room, "What happened?"

A black man crouched down beside her, observing her, "It's alright...it's the transmat. Does your head in," she looked around, blinking, "Get a bit of amnesia. What's your name?"

"Rose," she said after a moment, "But...where's the Doctor? Where's Angel?"

"Just remember. Do what the Android says. Don't provoke it. The Android's word is law."

"What d'you mean, android? Like...a robot?"

"Positions, everyone!" a woman with a clipboard called out, "Thank you!"

"Come on," he helped her to her feet, "Hurry up! Steady, steady..."

She hung onto him for support, slowly growing scared, "I was travelling. With the Doctor and Angel and a man called Captain Jack...the Doctor wouldn't just _leave_ me...neither would Angel..."

"That's enough chat!" the woman shouted, "Positions! Final call!" she looked over at the powered down robot being attended by technicians before glancing at the six podiums, waiting for the contestants, "Good luck!"

The man smiled with anticipation and looked at Rose, who just shook her head, confused, "But I'm not supposed to _be_ here…" she told him.

"Well, it says 'Rose' on the podium..." he remarked, nodding at the podium with her name on it, "Come on!" he dashed off and climbed behind the podium slated 'Roddrick.'

Slowly, confused, but with a dawning realization, Rose took her place behind her own podium, "Hold on...I must be going mad…" she looked around, "It _can't_ be. This looks like the…"

"Android activated!" the woman shouted as the Android began to move.

"Oh, my God," Rose breathed, seeing the orange haired robot before her, "The Android. The Anne-Droid…"

"Welcome, to 'The Weakest Link!'" the Anne-Droid replied.

~8~

Jack slowly awoke to a stark, white room, blurry gray faces with a splash of purple and blue in it above him, "Here we go again," the purple blur said, "We've got our work cut out for us."

"I don't know," the blue one replied, "He's sort of handsome. That's a good lantern jaw."

Jack jerked back to see he was lying on a chair in what seemed like the 'What Not To Wear' studio and blinked.

"Lantern jaws are _so_ last year," the Purple Droid corrected.

"Sorry..." Jack looked at them, "Nice to meet you ladies, but where exactly am I?"

"We're giving you a brand new image."

"Oh, hold on, I was with the Doctor and Ang…" he began, before he realized what they said, "Why, is there something wrong with what I'm wearing?"

"It's all very 20th century, where DID you get that denim?" the Blue Droid asked.

"Little place in Cardiff...it was called 'The Top Shop.'"

"Oh, design classic."

"But we're gonna have to find you some new colors," the Purple Droid remarked, "Maybe get rid of that 'Oklahoma Farm Boy' thing you've got going on..."

Jack stood up and faced them, his hands on his hips, rather indignant, though at a loss for words.

"Just stand still and let the Defabricator work its magic," the Blue Droid told him as she moved behind a small device.

"What's the Defabricator?" he asked. They just switched on the machine, a beam of light striking his clothing and dematerializing it. He didn't even seem bothered, "Ok...Defabricator. Does exactly what it says on the tin. Am I naked in front of millions of viewers?"

"Absolutely!" they cheered.

"Ladies…" he glanced down at his body with a smug smile, "...your viewing figures just went up."

~8~

Angel awoke with a gasp, looking around, only to find herself alone, on the floor, in the TARDIS, the Doctor, Rose, and Jack all missing. She pulled herself up from the floor, gripping the side of her head tightly as the room spun. Her muscles felt sore, and not as though from a workout but as though they'd almost been pulled apart.

She shook her head, groaning as she put a hand on the console, using it as leverage to heft herself up, half-clinging to it as she moved to the monitor, checking to make sure the trio wasn't just somewhere inside the TARDIS…they weren't. She sighed, looking back at the monitor, trying to track the Doctor or any of them to no avail. The TARDIS was working to bypass some sort of scrambler it was caught in but it would take time…and who knew what could happen by then.

She reached out and touched the rotor, resting her hand on it a moment, "You keep trying girl," she whispered, even her throat hurting, "You try to break that scramble, and I...I'll try to find them," she determined.

She turned and slowly walked over to the doors, staggering slightly as her muscles screamed in protest, but forcing herself on, knowing, just _knowing_ , that the others were in danger. She peeked out to see she was in a small room before stepping out, shutting the doors behind her. She leaned back against the doors, bracing herself against them as she breathed heavily, even that short walk had taken a lot out of her, she needed to gather her strength, she needed to find the Doctor.

She closed her eyes, sensing for the Doctor, trying to feel the presence of another Time Lord but whatever scrambler was out there was keeping her from sensing him, much like Van Statten's Dampener had done. She she frowned, concentrating, trying her hardest to get a feeling he always told her to trust in.

~8~

The sonic buzzed as the Doctor tried to open a door, "I can't open it…" he remarked to the girl who had helped him.

"It's got a deadlock seal," she replied, "Ever since Big Brother 504 when they all walked out..." there was no answer from the Doctor as he just walked across the room, searching for other exits, "You MUST remember that."

"What about this?" he gestured to a mirror.

"Oh, that's exoglass. You'd need a nuclear bomb to get through."

He scanned the edges, "Don't tempt me."

She leaned against the wall beside to him, whispering, "I know you're not supposed to talk about the outside world, but you _must've_ been watching. Do people like me? Lynda with a Y, not Linda with an I, she got forcibly evicted because she damaged the camera," the Doctor nodded, not paying very much attention, "Am I popular?"

"I don't remember."

"Oh, but does that mean I'm nothing? Some people get this far just 'cos they're insignificant. Doesn't anybody notice me?"

He looked at her properly now, almost pityingly, "No...you're...you're nice. You're sweet. Everybody thinks you're sweet."

"Oh!" she breathed, a bit touched, "Is that right? Is that what I am?" she smiled to herself, "Oh, no one's ever told me that before. Am I sweet? Really?"

"Yeah. Dead sweet!"

"Thank you!"

He turned to one of the windows to see it was black, "It's just a wall, isn't there supposed to be a garden out there?" he moved towards it as Lynda followed.

"Don't be daft," she laughed, "No one's got a garden anymore. Who's got a garden?" she gasped, her eyes wide, "Don't tell me YOU'VE got a garden!"

The Doctor examined the wall, "No, I've just got the TARDIS..." he turned suddenly, eyes wide, "I remember."

"That's the amnesia! So what happened? Where did they get you?"

"We'd just left Raxacoriofallapatorius. Then we went to Kyoto, that's right. Japan in 1336, and we only _just_ escaped...we were together, we were laughing, and then...there was this light..." he trailed, recalling the light shining through the walls as everyone was sucked into it, Angel reaching for him, him reaching for her as Jack tried to get to Rose before the light grew so bright it blocked everything out, "...this white light coming through the walls, and then..." he shook his head, "And then I woke up here."

"Yeah, that's the transmat beam. That's how they pick the housemates."

"Oh, Lynda with a Y...sweet little Lynda..." he sighed, walking a few paces into the room, "It's worse than that. I'm not just a passing traveler. No stupid little transmat gets inside _my_ ship. That beam was fifteen million times more powerful, which means...this isn't _just_ a game. There's something _else_ going on…" he peered up at a camera, "Well! Here's the latest update from the Big Brother house. I'm getting out. I'm gonna find my friends. And then I'm gonna find YOU," he pointed straight at the camera, the threat evident.

~8~

A male programmer watched the Doctor, concerned, before approaching an Indian female programmer, "Need a word."

"Hold on...let me finish this..." she muttered, working on 'The Weakest Link,' "19...18..."

~8~

"17...16...15..." the woman with the clipboard counted down, "Thank you people, transmitting in 12...11...10..."

Rose turned to Roddrick, agitated, "But I need to find the Doc…"

"Just…shut up and play the game!" he snapped, pushing her back.

"Alright then. What the hell? I'm gonna play to win!" she smiled as Roddrick looked at her distractedly, clearly thinking she was mad.

"3, and cue!" the woman called.

"Let's play 'The Weakest Link!'" the Anne-Droid began, "Start the clock. Agorax, the name of which basic food stuff is an anagram of the word 'beard'?"

"Bread," Agorax, a middle aged man, answered.

"Correct," the Anne-Droid turned to the next person, a middle aged woman, "Fitch, in the Pan Traffic Calendar, which month comes after Hoob?"

"Is it...Clavadoe?" she asked.

"No, Pandoff. Rose, in maths, what is 258 minus 158?"

"One hundred!" she shouted, very pleased.

"Correct. Roddrick…"

"Bank," he cut in.

"Which letter of the alphabet appears in the word 'dangle' but not in the word 'gland?'"

"E," he paused a bit, making sure.

"Correct! Colleen, in social security, what D is the name of the payment given to Martian Drones?"

"Default," Colleen, a young brunette woman, replied.

"Correct. Broff, the Great Cobalt Pyramid is built on the remains of which famous Old Earth Institute?"

"T…Touchdown?" Broff, a young man, stuttered.

"No, Torchwood," the Anne-Droid corrected as Rose laughed, "Agorax, in language, all five examples of which type of letter appear in the word 'facetious?'"

"Vowels," Agorax answered.

"Correct. Fitch, in biology, which blood cells contain iron, red or white?"

"Um…white?" she guessed as Rose giggled.

"No, red. Rose, in the holovid series 'Jupiter Rising,' the Grexnik is married to whom?"

"How should I know?" Rose laughed at the absurdity of the situation.

"No, the correct answer is Lord Drayvole."

~8~

"Why's she _laughing_?" the female programmer asked, watching Rose.

"Roddrick, in maths, what is nine squared?" the Anne-Droid moved on.

"Oh, my God...I don't think she knows..."

"And I've got a housemate to appear out of _nowhere_ ," the male programmer leaned over her shoulder, "I _told_ you, it's like the game's running itself."

~8~

Angel's eyes snapped open, her hearts thudding in her chest as she could swear she'd just felt the Doctor beside her. But he wasn't, but she knew what it meant, what it must mean...he was there! He was out there! Just through those doors ahead of her...somewhere. She pushed off the TARDIS and walked over to the doors to the room, peering through them to find quite a few people working at the control room of Satellite 5, alive this time, more of them, the room larger, with more monitors, less disused. She watched them closely, making sure their attention was directed at the screens, before slipping out of the doors and creeping along the wall to the lift in the back.

She paused, hearing the Doctor's voice coming from somewhere. She looked over to see a screen with the Doctor on it, poking around some sort of house. She had only a moment to consider that before the lift arrived and she got in quickly...but...just before the doors closed, straight ahead of her, she saw a pale woman standing on a small platform, tubes connected to her, staring right back at her with unseeing eyes.

~8~

Jack stood, admiring himself in the mirror, flexing his muscles, wearing leather trousers and a white tank.

"It's the buccaneer look," the Purple Droid remarked, "Little dash of pirate and just a tweak of President Schwarzenegger."

"Nah, not sure about the vest," he looked down, "What about a little bit of color to lift it?"

"Absolutely not," the Blue Droid cut in, " _Never_ wear black with color. It makes the color look cheap and the black look boring. Now, let's talk jackets."

"I kinda like the first one…"

"No, that's a bit too much Hell's Angel. I think I like the shorter one," he shrugged into it in front of the mirror, "Look, waist length, nice and slimming, shows off the bum," she patted his bum as he turned to her.

"Works for me."

"Once we've got an outfit, we can look at the face," the Purple Droid called, "Ever thought about cosmetic surgery?"

"Well, I've considered it, yeah. A little lift around the eyes...tighten up the jaw line...what do you think?" he placed his hands on the Blue Droid's plastic breasts flirtatiously, his back to the purple one.

"Oh, let's have a BIT more ambition…" the Purple Droid pulled a cap off her forearm to reveal a chainsaw underneath, "Let's do something... _cutting edge_."

~8~

"So, Rose," the Anne-Droid faced her, "What do you actually do?"

"I just travel about a bit," she said, lighthearted, almost even relaxed, "Bit of a...tourist, I suppose."

"Another way of saying 'unemployed.'"

"No…"

"Have you got a job?"

"Well...not really, no, but..."

"Then you ARE unemployed! And yet, you've STILL got enough money to buy peroxide. Why Fitch?"

Rose glanced down at her board where she'd voted to cast off Fitch, "Uh...I think she got a few of the questions wrong," Fitch stared at the ground, tears running down her cheeks, "...that's all."

"Oh, you'd know all about that."

"Well yeah, but I can't vote for myself, so it had to be Fitch..." Rose reasoned, growing a bit tense and worried when Fitch started sobbing, "I'm sorry...that's the game. That's how it works...I had to vote for someone."

Fitch ignored her and turned to the Anne-Droid, pleading, "Let me try again, it was the lights and everything, I couldn't think."

"In fact, with three answers wrong, _Broff_ was the weakest link in that round, but, it's votes that count."

"I'm sorry. Oh, please...oh God, help me!" she turned to the others, begging for help, as Rose looked at her, still confused by her reaction. Roddrick looked down as Broff sobbed.

"Fitch, you are the weakest link. Goodbye!" the Anne-Droid opened its mouth and a gun snapped out of it. Without a moment's hesitation, it fired a thick, fast bolt of yellow light right at Fitch, disintegrating her. The gun retreated back into the Anne-Droid's mouth as Rose looked back in horror.

"And we've gone to the adverts," the woman with the clipboard called, "Back in three minutes..."

"Wassat?" Rose turned to Roddrick, gesturing to the smoke, "What's just happened?"

"She was the weakest link, she gets disintegrated," he replied, wiping his board. She just stared at him, uncomprehending, he rolled his eyes, "Blasted into atoms."

Rose blinked, stunned, "But I _voted_ for her. Oh, my God. This is _sick_ ," the contestants glanced at her, "All of ya, you're just sick! I'm _not_ playing this…"

"I'm not playing!" Broff suddenly cut in, whimpering, crying, "I...I can't do it," the Anne-Droid turned as he jumped off his podium and tried to run for it, "I'm not…please, somebody let me…"

"You _are_ the weakest link," she said, firing at Broff as well, "Goodbye."

Rose stared in horror as the gun retracted back into the Anne-Droid's mouth.

Roddrick shuffled uncomfortably before leaning over to Rose, "Don't try to escape. It's play...or die."

~8~

Angel stepped off the lift, looking around Floor 56 with a frown of concentration on her face as she wandered around the deserted, dark area, following her gut instinct, hoping it would lead to the Doctor. She stopped in the middle, a sudden feeling of unease entering her as she stumbled back, nearly tripping over a box of what seemed to be supplies by the wall. She looked back at it, her eyes widening at the logo on the box, 'Bad Wolf Corp.' Bad Wolf, again! Rose had told her of the times she and the Doctor had encountered those words before they'd found her in the museum. How it had been in London, in Platform One, with Gwyneth, London again...that was not a good sign at all and her stomach twisted painfully in knots at what it could mean.

She quickly turned and ran across the floor. She had to find the Doctor, Rose, and Jack. And she had to find them _now_!

~8~

Lynda and the other two housemates sat on the sofa before the TV as the Doctor worked on sonicing one of the doors, "Doctor, they said ALL the housemates must gather on the sofa," she told him, "You've _got_ to."

"Busy getting out, thanks," he waved her off.

"But if you don't obey, then ALL the housemates get punished!"

He sighed, grudgingly accepting this, and went to sit on the sofa, shutting off the sonic, "Well maybe I'll be voted out, then."

"How stupid are you?" the other man scoffed at him, "You've only just joined, you're not eligible."

"Don't try anything clever or we _all_ get it in the neck," Lynda added.

"Big Brother House, this is Davina Droid," the voice called through the speakers. Lynda and the housemates grabbed each other's hands, the black woman grabbing the Doctor's too as he rolled his eyes, "Crobsie, Lynda, and Strood, you have all been nominated for eviction. And the eighth person to be evicted from the Big Brother House is...Crosbie!"

Crosbie gasped, standing up as Strood and Lynda did as well, "I'm sorry!" Lynda hugged her, "Oh, I'm sorry! Sorry!"

"Oh, it should've been me, that's not fair...oh, Crosbie love..." Strood put an arm around her as the Doctor just sat back on the sofa, his hands behind his head.

"Crosbie, you have ten seconds to make your farewells, and then we're gonna get you!" the voice called.

Crosbie and the others jumped up and ran to the door as the Doctor shook his head at them.

"I won't forget you," Lynda swore.

"I'm sorry, I stole your soap," she admitted to Lynda.

"Oh, I don't mind, honestly," she hugged her again.

"Thanks for the food, you're a smashing cook," Strood kissed her cheeks, "Bless you."

The door slid open, a small, narrow, stark white room just behind it, ending in another door, "Crosbie, please leave the Big Brother House."

Crosbie stared into the room, not wanting to go, "Bye, then...bye Lynda..."

"Bye..." Lynda breathed. She and Strood moved, making an archway with their arms as Crosbie walked underneath. The Doctor watching them at the scene they were making over it all.

"I don't believe it," Lynda sniffled, tearful, "Poor Crosbie..."

"It's only a game show," the Doctor called, "She'll make a fortune on the outside! Sell her story, release a record, fitness video, all of that...she'll be laughing!"

"What d'you mean, 'on the outside?'" Lynda shook her head.

The TV turned on, revealing Crosbie standing in the middle of the white room, trembling, "Here we go..." Strood dashed over to the sofa with Lynda, watching, nervous.

The Doctor sighed and relaxed again.

"Well, what are they waiting for?" the Doctor asked after a moment of Crosbie standing there anxiously, "Why don't they just let her go?"

"Stop it, it's not funny," Lynda warned him.

"Eviction in...5...4...3...2...1!" the voice shouted.

Suddenly a golden beam hit Crosbie, turning her to ash.

The tension was released as Lynda and Strood stared at the screen, distraught. The Doctor sat up, staring at the screen in shock, "What was _that_?"

"Disintegrator beam," Strood answered.

The Doctor looked at them, not understanding.

"She's been evicted.," Lynda explained, "From life."

~8~

"No one programmed the transmat," the male programmer explained to the female, "No one selected the new contestants...it is _exactly_ like those stories."

"Oh, don't start _that_ again," she waved him off, "I think you need to take a session off."

"Well, I would. If you'd take it with me."

"And don't start _that_ again either."

"But the rumors go back _decades_. Saying that something's been...hidden up here. Underneath the transmissions."

"But the Controller would know. She watches everything."

"Maybe she just can't see it. Gotta allow for human error."

"Well, that's your problem, then," she leaned over and whispered to him, "I don't think she's been human for _years_."

They smiled and looked to the other end of the room where the Controller was wired up to the computers. Deathly white, tubes in her, muttering under her breath, monitoring and controlling all the transmissions, "18...19...20...21...22...23...transmit..." she mumbled

~8~

The Doctor paced around the house, "Are you INSANE _?_ You just step right into the _disintegrator_? Is it _that_ important, getting your face on the telly? Is it worth DYING for?"

Lynda stood up, "You're talking like we've got a choice!"

"But I thought you had to apply!"

"Don't be so stupid," Strood commented, "That's how they played it centuries back."

"You get chosen whether you like it or not! Everyone on Earth is a potential contestant. The transmat beam picks you out at random. And it's nonstop. There are sixty Big Brother Houses running all at once."

"How many?" his eyes widened in shock, "SIXTY?"

"They've had to cut back," Strood remarked, regretful, "It's not what it was."

"It's a CHARNEL house! What about the winners? What do they get?"

"They get to live," Lynda shrugged.

"Is that _it_?!"

"Well, isn't that _enough_?!"

He stared at her a few more moments before stalking across the room, "Angel and Rose are out there. They got caught in the transmat. They're contestants. Time I got out," he turned around to them, "That other contestant, Linda with an I, she was forcibly evicted for what?"

"Damaged property..."

"What, like this?" he turned and pointed his sonic at the camera, destroying it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hmmm...so Angel wasn't taken with the others into a show? Must be a reason for that, don't you think? Well, I hinted a bit that there was more to Angel (and her abilities) than meets the eye way back. Gave a tiny hint in Father's Day, little bit more of it here. Even more that will be popping up as the saga goes on :) This particular reason will be explained, oddly enough, during The Satan Pit :)


	20. Bad Wolf: Breaking Out

Angel stepped past a door, pausing, before stepping back and looking at it. She blinked, stepping forward and resting her hand against it…she could tell, somehow she just _knew_ , the Doctor was behind this door…now if she could only get it open.

She looked around. seeing nothing of use, no tools, nothing…she bit her lip. looking back at the door…she really should have taken the Doctor up on his offer to have the TARDIS make her a sonic…

~8~

Jack stood before a mirror, dressed in tennis garb, swishing a racket in front of him, "No. I'm just not getting this. It just too safe, too decent. And you'd never keep it clean."

"Stage Two ready and waiting!" the Blue Droid cried.

"Bring it on, girls!" he grinned, standing in front of the defabricator again, only to end up naked once more.

"And now it's time for the faceoff!" the Purple Droid announced.

"What does that mean?" he asked enthusiastically, "Do I get to compete with someone else?"

"No, like I said, face...off!" she held up her arms, one with needles on the end of each finger and another with a chainsaw.

He stared at it, not at all scared, though a bit surprised.

"I think you'd look good with a dog's head," the Blue Droid commented, snipping the enormous scissor replacing her forearm.

"Or maybe no head at all. That would be _so_ _outrageous_."

"And we could stitch your legs to the middle of your chest."

" _Nothing_ is too extreme. It's to _die_ for."

"Now, hold on, ladies," he warned, "I don't want to have to shoot either one of you."

"But you're unarmed!"

"You're naked!" the Blue Droid agreed. Jack just reached behind him and pulled out a small gun, pointing it at them, "But...that's a Compact Laser Deluxe!"

"WHERE were you hiding that?"

"You really _don't_ wanna know," he smirked

"Give me that accessory…" the Purple Droid moved towards him.

He simply fired, blowing her head off followed by the other one.

~8~

"You are the weakest link. Goodbye!"

Roddrick flinched as the blast struck the woman beside him, Colleen.

"Going to the break!" the woman with the clipboard shouted, "Two minutes on the clock. Just a reminder, we've got solar flare activity coming up in ten."

Rose turned to Roddrick as he cleaned his board, "Colleen was clever, she banked all our money. Why'd you vote for her?"

"'Cos I want to keep you in!" he explained, "You're stupid! You don't even know the Princess Vossaheen's surname. When it comes to the final, I want to be up against _you._ So that you get disintegrated, and I get a stack-load of credits. Courtesy of the Bad Wolf Corporation..."

"What d'you mean? Who's Bad Wolf?"

He looked at her as though she were stupid, "They're in charge. They run the Game Station."

"Why are they called Bad Wolf?"

"I dunno, it's just a name. It's like an Old Earth nursery rhyme sort of thing…what does it matter?"

"I keep hearing those words everywhere we go. Bad Wolf..." she trailed off, thinking back to Gwyneth mentioning the big bad wolf, and the helicopter in Van Statten's base Bad Wolf One, and the banner in Margaret's exhibition Blaidd Drwg, "Different times...different places like it's written all over the Universe..."

"What're you going on about?"

"If the Bad Wolf is in charge of this quiz. Then...maybe I'm not here by mistake. Someone's been _planning_ this..."

~8~

"The Doctor, you've broken the House Rules," the voice of Big Brother House stated, "Big Brother has no choice but to evict you," the Doctor leapt off the sofa in triumph, "You have ten seconds to make your farewells, and then we're gonna get you!"

He practically ran to the door, "That's more like it! Come on then, open up!"

"You're mad!" Lynda rushed after him, "It's like you WANT to die!"

"I reckon he's a plant!" Strood replied, "He was only brought in to stir things up!"

The door slid open and the Doctor stepped through it, "The Doctor, please leave the Big Brother House."

Strood rushed back to the sofa, watching the Doctor on the screen while Lynda stood at the doorway, watching anxiously as it closed.

"Come on then, disintegrate me!" the Doctor shouted, "Come on, what're you waiting for?" he looked impatient and expectant.

"He is, he's mad," Lynda mumbled, "He's bonkers."

~8~

The programmers watched the Doctor on the screen, "Disintegrate me!"

"I told you to keep _an eye_ on him, not KILL him," the female programmer remarked.

"He damaged the property," the male sighed, "It's an automatic process."

~8~

The Doctor folded his arms, waiting, beaming, "Eviction in 5...4...3...2...1..."

Lynda screwed her eyes shut…

But nothing happened, the only sound she heard was that of the power turning off.

"Ha ha!" the Doctor shouted joyfully, "I knew it! You see? Someone BROUGHT me into this game. If they'd wanted me dead, they could've transmatted me into a volcano."

~8~

"What did you do?" the female programmer asked.

"Nothing!" the male shouted.

"They _want_ me alive," the Doctor continued.

"It's like...some sort of override," he frowned.

"Maybe the security isn't as tight _this_ end," the Doctor looked at the door before turning mockingly to the camera, "Are you following this? I'm getting out!"

~8~

The Doctor turned the sonic at the door to the house, opening it to reveal Lynda standing there, "Come with me," he called to her.

Lynda glanced back at Strood who hissed, "We're not allowed!"

"Stay in there, you've got a 50-50 chance of disintegration. Stay with me, I promise I'll get you out alive. Come on!"

"No…I can't," she stuttered, nervous, "I can't..."

"Lynda, you're sweet. From what I've seen of your world, d'you think _anyone_ votes for _sweet_?" Lynda nodded at the logic as he held out his hand. After a moment's hesitation she quickly grabbed it. He turned and soniced the other door.

It opened to reveal Angel standing on the other side.

"Doctor!" she shouted, heaving with relief, so happy that she'd found him.

"Angel!" he quickly pulled her into a tight hug as he stepped past the door with Lynda, "How did you find me?" he asked, setting her down.

"I did what you told me. I followed my feelings."

He beamed at her, "Fantastic!" before pulling her into a hug, spinning her around.

"Doctor," she began, growing serious as he put her down, "We're on Satellite 5."

His eyes widened as he looked around in surprise, seeing a large 56 on the wall. He turned and ran to one of the doors on the side of the room, sonicing it and stepping through, flashing a control panel, "No guards?" he looked at her.

"None at all. It's how I made it down."

"That makes a change. You'd think a big business like Satellite 5 would be armed to the teeth."

They walked into another room, the Doctor sonicing the walls.

"No one's called it Satellite 5 in _ages_ ," Lynda told them, "It's the Game Station now. Hasn't been Satellite 5 in about a hundred years."

"A hundred years _exactly_ ," Angel replied as the Doctor moved to check his watch but looked at her, "It's the year 200-100."

He nodded, she always seemed to have a knack for pinpointing the time, "We were here before," the Doctor turned to Lynda, "Floor 139. Satellite 5 was broadcasting news channels back then...had a bit of trouble upstairs. Nothing too serious. Easy, gave 'em a hand, home in time for tea."

"A hundred years ago?" Lynda smiled skeptically as the Doctor tried to open a touch pad door with no luck, "What, you were here a hundred years ago?"

The Doctor flashed along the door with the sonic, "Yep!"

"You're looking good on it..."

"I moisturize."

Angel frowned, "No you don't," before turning to Lynda as he gave a soft chuckle, "Our phone box travels in time," she told the girl, as though it were perfectly logical and normal.

Lynda gave the girl an odd smile and nodded slowly, not quite sure what to make of it.

The Doctor just gave a small smile at that as well, looking down at the sonic, "Funny sorts of readings. All kinds of energy...the place is _humming_. It's weird. This goes way beyond normal transmissions. What would they need all that power for?" he turned to try another door, Angel watching.

"I dunno," Lynda shrugged, looking around at the station, "I think we're the first ever contestants to get outside."

The Doctor paused and looked up at Angel, "How did you get out?"

"I was never in," she replied, "I just…woke up in the TARDIS, a bit sore is all, and tried to find you and Rose and Jack."

"Did you find them?"

She shook her head sadly, "It's easier to find you. I...I have a much stronger connection to you as a Time Lord like you do me. I could sense you more than them."

He nodded, resuming scanning the doors, as he asked Lynda, "We had two friends travelling with us. They must've got caught in the same transmat. Where would they be?"

"I dunno," the woman shrugged, "They could've been allocated anywhere. There's a hundred different games."

"What sort of games?" Angel frowned, having only caught a glimpse of the Doctor's.

"Well, there's ten floors of 'Big Brother.' There's a different House behind each of those doors. And then beyond that, there's all sorts of shows. It's nonstop. There's um...'Call My Bluff' with real guns, 'Countdown' where you've got thirty seconds to stop the bomb going off, 'Ground Force' which is a nasty one 'cos you get turned into compost. Er, 'Wipeout' speaks for itself, oh, and 'Stars In Their Eyes' literally, stars in their eyes. If you don't sing, you get blinded."

"And you _watch_ this stuff?" the Doctor frowned, disgusted.

"Everyone does. How come you don't?"

Angel just shook her head, "Why would we watch something like _that_?" she couldn't understand it, why would anyone watch others of their species get harmed in such a way and find it entertaining? She looked at the Doctor, wondering if this was just another human thing she didn't understand, but he seemed just as offended as she did.

"Never paid for my license," he shrugged.

"Oh, my God!" Lynda's eyes widened, "You get _executed_ for that!"

He just held up the sonic, "Let them try," before he pulled Angel back to his side, his arm around her shoulders, beaming at her, "And Angel'll see 'em coming a mile away. She's a psychic."

"Well you're a thief," Angel countered with a small smile, that was the second time he'd called her that...and she had to admit, she rather liked it. It actually made her feel a bit special.

Lynda just looked at them, "You keep saying things that don't make sense. But who are you though, Doctor? Really?"

"Doesn't matter," he waved her off, walking away to try another door.

"Well, it does to me...I've just put my life in your hands."

" _Our_ hands," Angel cut in, before realizing she'd never officially introduced herself, "I'm Angel, nice to meet you."

Lynda smiled, shaking her hand, "Lynda, with a Y."

"We're just travelers," the Doctor explained, "Wandering past. Believe it or not, all I'm after is a quiet life."

"So...if we get out of here, what're you gonna do?" Lynda looked at him, "Just...wander off again?"

"Fast as I can."

"So...I could come with ya?" Lynda began tentatively. She smiled down at the Doctor as he studied her properly.

"Could she?" Angel asked, excited to possibly have more people on the TARDIS, she really liked Rose and Jack, humans were fascinating, "The more the...merrier right?" she looked at the Doctor.

"Right," he laughed, agreeing as he nodded at Lynda, "Maybe she could."

Lynda brightened, "I wouldn't get in the way."

"I wouldn't mind if you did. Not a bad idea, Lynda with a Y," he smiled cheerily, "But first of all, we've gotta concentrate on the getting out," he scanned the edge of the door, "And to do that, you've got to know your enemy, who's controlling it, who's in charge of the satellite now?"

"Hold on..." Lynda rushed over to the opposite end of the room and pulled down a lever, lighting up huge letters on the wall, 'Bad Wolf Corporation,' "Your Lords and Masters."

The Doctor gazed up at the letters in wonder and confusion.

"It's not a coincidence," Angel said quietly, looking up at them too, "I've seen this _everywhere_. Van Statten's helicopter, a TV station on Satellite 5, graffitied on a poster in 1987, scrawled on the Chula med-ship, Margaret's banner…and now here it is…it _can't_ just be a coincidence."

"No," he agreed, taking her hand, concerned, "It can't."

~8~

"Ok, you win," the male programmer turned to the female, "The Controller's got to handle this. The Archive makes a record of all transmat activities," they watched the Doctor, Lynda, and Angel working on Floor 56, "Find out how they got on board...Archive Six," he pulled his headphones off and strode slowly across the floor to address the Controller, "Controller...we have a problem."

"Continue working," the pale woman said.

"We have a security problem."

"Continue working. 6...5..."

"I'm sorry, but I _can't_. We have contestants _outside_ of the games. But the alarms haven't gone off."

"No security. The games continue."

"But we can't just let them wander..."

"They are no one."

"They are no one?"

The female programmer placed a hand on the touch sensitive lock to open the door to the Archive and the Controller gasped with pain, "Er...sorry," she called to the Controller, "I was just, um..."

"Archive Six is out of bounds."

"But I need to check the transmat log..."

"Archive Six is out of bounds. No one may enter Archive Six. Return to work. Return to work. Inform all staff, solar flares in delta point seven. 19...20..."

~8~

Jack attached his laser to the Defabricator, "Compatible systems...just align the wave signature…" he laughed, "Thatta boy! Got myself a gun!" he picked it up and glanced at the dead droids, "Well, ladies, the pleasure was all mine. Which is the only thing that matters in the end," he turned and rushed off, leaving the smoldering bodies of the droids behind as he ran onto Floor 299, placing his hand on a pad to open the lift. He checked his wrist device, "Two sets of two hearts, that's them...which floor?" he waited impatiently before pressing a few buttons and closing the doors.

~8~

The Doctor, Angel, and Lynda emerged onto an observation deck, overlooking the Earth, which now looked grey, dead, with only a few pockets of light just barely shining through.

"Blimey!" Lynda breathed, still impressed with the sight, "I've never seen it for real before! Not...not from orbit. Planet Earth..."

"What's _happened_ to it?" Angel gaped, staring at it sadly.

"Well, it's _always_ been like that. Ever since I was born. See that there?" she pointed to a dark patch, "That's the Great Atlantic Smog Storm. It's been going _twenty years_. We get newsflashes telling us when it's safe to breathe outside."

"So, the population just sits there?" the Doctor frowned, "Half the world's too fat, half the world's too thin, and you lot just watch telly?"

"Ten thousand channels, all beaming down from here."

"The Human Race," he nearly spat, "Brainless sheep. Being fed on a diet of…mind you, have they still got that program where three people have to live with a bear?"

"Oh, 'Bear With Me,' I LOVE that one!"

"And me. The celebrity edition where the bear got in the…"

"Got in the bath!" Lynda laughed.

"Doctor," Angel cut in, casting him a disapproving look.

He cleared his throat, getting back to the matter at hand, "But it's all gone wrong. I mean, HISTORY'S gone wrong. _Again_. This should be the Fourth Great and Bountiful Human Empire, I don't understand. Last time we were here, we put it right."

"No, but that's when it first went _wrong_ ," Lynda remarked, "A hundred years ago, like you said. All the news channels, they just shut down overnight."

"But that was me," he frowned, "I did that."

"Oh honestly Doctor," Angel rolled her eyes, earning a curious look from him, "But that was US. WE did that," she emphasized, before stepping up and taking his hand, "You're _not_ alone anymore. Remember? You've got me now."

In more ways than one, she knew.

Not only did he have her as the last of their species, neither of them alone any longer, and as 'something more' than just a companion, she saw him as much more than just another Time Lord too, but...he GOT her, he understood her in a way no one ever had before, not even her mother. He was just...so incredible, so fascinating, so strong and so kind and so good...to see him feeling so hurt at the events that had occured, hurt her too. Her hearts always constricted painfully when he was hurt or sad. She didn't like seeing him upset, she'd much rather see him smiling, she'd...she'd much rather be the source of his smiles. It was why she never minded when the other chuckled or smiled at her confusion when it came to humans, because she got to see them smile, she got to see HIM smile. It was worth it to see him smiling like that, like he was right now.

He smiled softly at her as she gazed up at him, "Yeah. I do, don't I?"

She nodded, "And you always will," she added, making that promise to herself and to him. No matter what, she'd always be there for him, like he had been for her, help him, as he had her...she blinked as another thought struck her...love him.

She let out a breath, blinking again...she loved him.

She _really_ did.

She couldn't help but smile at that notion though, her hearts racing as she realized it was true. He'd saved her from Van Statten, saved her in more ways than just that, he'd trusted her, confided in her, believed in her, and he'd let her see parts of himself that she doubted anyone else saw, talked with her into the night, made her laugh, made her smile, made her feel accepted and _safe_ , he made her feel like she was special and...well...loved. She had no idea if he felt the same way, but...he was very sweet to her, very kind, and...he treated her differently than he did Rose. The way he looked at her at times, the softness in his eyes, the special smiles he seemed to only give her, the noises of protest he made when other men were around her...she didn't know what it all meant, but...she could hope. Because...she saw it sometimes, when she caught him watching her when he didn't think she was looking, there was a...sparkle...in his eyes that she only ever saw when he looked at her.

She had no idea how to bring the subject up, she knew now was not the best time, not till they'd gotten Rose back and found Jack, worked out what had happened to the Human Empire and set it right again. Then...then she'd talk to him. He never laughed at her when she wanted to talk about things before, she doubted he would then either. She nodded to herself, yes, when they had finished saving the Earth, again, she'd tell him and maybe, just maybe, she'd find out that he loved her back.

"There was nothing left in their place," Lynda spoke, smiling at their little moment, pulling Angel from her thoughts, "No information. The whole planet just froze. The government, the economy, they collapsed...that was the start of it. One hundred years of hell."

The Doctor stared at the wasteland of a planet, stunned, "We made this world…"

"So we should fix it," Angel remarked, focusing on the problem at hand.

The Doctor looked at her again and grinned, "Let's get to it!"

~8~

Agorax screamed as the disintegrator beam hit him, retreating back into the Anne-Droid's mouth, "That leaves Rose and Roddrick, you're going head-to-head...let's play 'The Weakest Link.'"

"Right, that's the end of _tactical_ voting...you're on your own now," Roddrick muttered to Rose.

~8~

"Hey, handsome!" Jack greeted, running in the room, "Beautiful," he winked playfully at Angel, "Good to see ya both! Any sign of Rose?"

"Can't you track her down?" the Doctor asked.

"She's probably still in her game," Angel muttered, "All the rooms are shielded. The TARDIS was trying to unscramble it before I left."

The Doctor nodded and turned to work on a computer, "If we can just get inside this computer...she's GOT to be here somewhere."

"Well, you'd better hurry up," Jack remarked, "These games don't have a happy ending."

"You think I don't know that?" he snapped.

Jack held up his hands in surrender and handed over his wrist device, "There you go," the Doctor grabbed it, "Patch that in. It's programmed to find her."

"Thanks," he muttered.

"Hey there!" Jack greeted, turning to shake Lynda's hand.

"Hello!" she beamed.

"Captain Jack Harkness," he grinned.

"Lynda Moss."

"Lynda with a _Y_ ," Angel added, just so Jack wouldn't confuse her with any other Lindas he might know.

Jack gave a little laugh, "Nice to meet you, L _y_ nda Moss," he eyed her.

"D'you mind flirting _outside_?" the Doctor asked, not even looking up, as Angel sniggered.

"I was just saying _hello_!" Jack defended.

"Which is flirting when it comes to you," Angel countered, having finally picked that up from comments Rose and the Doctor had made on quite a few other adventures with the man. And now, _now_ she knew why she'd always felt so odd and uncomfortable when Jack had tried to 'say hello' to her a few times. She loved the Doctor, probably had for a while now, and having another man try to flirt with her, another man who wasn't the Doctor, just felt... _wrong_...

"I'm not complaining," Lynda smiled at him.

Jack kissed her hand, "Which is a good idea."

"Oh!" she blushed.

The system bleeped in protest and the Doctor glared at it, "It's not compatible!" he shouted, angry and frustrated, "This _stupid_ system doesn't make sense," he handed the wrist device to Angel and pulled the computer panel away with Jack's help before Angel tossed it back. He frowned, trying to patch it in again, "This place _should_ be a basic broadcaster. The systems are twice as complicated. It's more than just television...this station's transmitting something else."

"Like what?" Jack asked.

"I don't know. This whole Bad Wolf thing's tied up with me. Someone's manipulating my entire life. It's some sort of trap and Rose is stuck inside it."

~8~

"Rose, in geography, the Grand Central Ravine is named after which Ancient Britain City?"

Rose hesitated, Roddrick had already answered a question correct, "Is it York?"

"No, the correct answer is Sheffield."

Roddrick 1. Rose 0.

~8~

The wrist device bleeped.

"Found her!" the Doctor shouted, "Floor 407!"

Lynda's eyes widened, scared, "Oh, my God! She's with the Anne-Droid! You've gotta get her out of there!"

~8~

"Roddrick, in literature, the author of 'Lucky' was Jackie who?"

"Stewart?" he frowned.

"No, the correct answer is Collins."

Roddrick 1, Rose 0.

"Rose, the oldest inhabitant of the Isop Galaxy is the Face of what?"

"Boe!" she shouted, "The Face of Boe!"

"That is the correct answer."

Roddrick 1, Rose 1.

~8~

The Doctor, Angel, Jack, and Lynda waited impatiently in the lift, the Doctor and Angel watching the numbers racing up.

"Come on..." Angel breathed, fidgeting, wanting to get to Rose, the pit in her stomach growing with the numbers.

"Come on!" the Doctor shouted.

~8~

"Roddrick, in history, who was the President of the Red Velvets?"

"Hoshbin Frane," he said quickly.

"That is the correct answer."

Roddrick 2, Rose 1.

"Rose, in food, the dish Gaffabeque originated on which planet?"

"Um...is it..." she shook her head, at a loss, "...Mars?"

"Nope, the correct answer is Lucifer."

Roddrick 2, Rose 1.

~8~

The Doctor and Angel stared at the counter of the lift intently, holding each other's hand tightly.

~8~

"Roddrick, which measurement of length is said to have been defined by the Emperor Jate as the distance from his nose to his fingertip?"

"Would that be a goffle?" he frowned.

"No. The correct answer is a paab."

Roddrick 2, Rose 1.

"Rose, in fashion, Stella Pok Baint is famous for what?

"Shoes," she guessed firmly.

"No. The correct answer is hats."

Roddrick 2, Rose 1...

And with just one question left for each of them.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Bam! Breakthrough for Angel! I've been portraying her as a bit aloof and not quite understanding not just of humans but of expressions and other interactions and feelings in general. I sort of thought it would be interesting for HER to realize she had feelings for the Doctor before HE did, because I have promised this WILL be Doctor/OC so we all know his feelings will show up, they've been developing all along he just needs to fully realize them now. And...there's another reason why Angel has realized hers first, it'll be something that will be lingering as a slight fear in the back of her mind for quite a while, popping up only a handful of times throughout the saga. We'll see a bit more of it during Girl in the Fireplace :)
> 
> As promised at the end of The Doctor Dances, Angel WILL be changing a bit of the show as she goes along, we'll see the start of that in the very next chapter :)
> 
> As for whether Bad Wolf will still be Rose...well...I'm not saying anything about it :)


	21. Bad Wolf: Dust to Dust

The Doctor, Angel, Lynda, and Jack bolted out of the lift as it reached Floor 407, able to hear the Anne-Droid's voice ahead of them, "Roddrick, in physics, who discovered the Fifteen-Dash-Ten Barric Fields?"

"Game Room Six, which one is it?!" the Doctor called, looking around at the doors around them.

"This way!" Angel turned and ran for one, just _knowing_ Rose would be in that one.

~8~

"San...Hazeldine," he answered hesitatingly.

"No..."

Roddrick 2, Rose 1.

~8~

The Doctor whipped out the sonic as they made it to the door, flashing it across as they heard the Anne-Droid continue from within, "...the correct answer is San Chen."

"Stand back, let me blast it open," Jack called.

"Can't, it's made of Hydra Combination," the Doctor replied grimly, frantically trying to work the door open.

~8~

"Rose, in history, which Icelandic city hosted Murder Spree Twenty?"

Rose stared at the Anne-Droid…if she could _just_ answer this question right, a tie, more time, that was all she needed…

"Reykjavik..." she guessed.

"No, the correct answer is Pola Ventura."

The game was over.

Roddrick 2, Rose 1.

"Oh, my God!" Roddrick shouted, "I've done it!" he smirked at Rose, "You've lost!"

~8~

The sonic whirred, "Come on, come on, come on..." the Doctor muttered.

~8~

"But I'm not meant to be here!" Rose shouted, terrified, "I need to find the Doctor or Angel, they've _got_ to be here somewhere. The Doctor's always here! He wouldn't just _leave_ me!"

"Roddrick, you are the strongest link, you will be transported home with 1,600 credits."

"Oh, thank you, thank you so much," Roddrick whooped.

"This game is illegal!" Rose yelled, leaning over her podium, "I'm telling you to stop!"

Suddenly the woman with the clipboard turned to see the Doctor, Angel, Jack, and Lynda barge into the room at the back.

"Rose!" Angel shouted, seeing her.

"Rose, you leave this life with nothing…" the Anne-Droid continued.

"Stop this game!" Jack yelled, brandishing his gun.

"I order you to stop this game!" the Doctor commanded.

"We're live on air!" the woman shouted.

The Doctor and Angel ran as fast as they could, Rose starting to run towards them, pushing the podium away.

"You are the weakest link."

"Look out for the Anne-Droid, it's armed!" Rose yelled.

The Anne-Droid turned her head, dropping her mouth, shooting Rose square in the back with the disintegrator beam.

With a scream, Rose was gone, mere _feet_ away from the Time Lords.

Jack ran towards the set in a rage, "What the hell did you do to her?!"

The Doctor crouched down by the pile of dust that was Rose, the smoke clearing away from it, shocked, as Angel stood there, looking down at it curiously, before turning in a circle, looking around as though trying to see something that wasn't there. He reached out, picking up a piece of dust between his fingers, feeling it… _so_ sorry.

"Back off!" Jack shouted, brandishing his gun.

"Doctor…" Angel whispered, looking at him again as she moved to kneel at his side.

"I need security and I need it here right now!" the woman ordered, "It's this lot..."

"She's not dead," she said and the Doctor looked up at her sharply, "She's still alive."

"Don't you touch them!" Jack spun around, seeing security guards approach the Doctor and Angel.

"How do you know?" the Doctor looked at her, desperate to believe it.

She smiled, resting a hand to the center of her chest, "I can _feel_ it…"

"Leave them alone!" Jack ordered, turning the gun on the guards. The Doctor _just_ started to hope, when the guard yanked him and Angel up, "You _killed_ her!" Jack glared at the woman as the guards pulled his hands behind him, "Your stupid freaking game show killed her."

"Sir, ma'am, I'm arresting you under Private Legislation Sixteen of the Game Station Syndicate," the guard recited.

The Doctor looked at Angel and she nodded, the two of them being led away.

~8~

The Doctor was half-thrown against a gate and searched as he stood there stoic, biding his time. The sonic was wrenched from his pocket as he was turned back to face the guard who shoved it in his face, "Can you tell us the purpose of this device, sir?"

The Doctor didn't even look at it, instead staring intently at Angel over his shoulder, searching for truth in her eyes.

~8~

They sat on a bench, in a little holding cell, as they were interrogated, Jack and Lynda on each end, the Doctor and Angel in the center.

"Can you tell us how you got on board?" the guard asked.

"Just leave him alone…" Lynda began.

The guard turned to her, grabbing her cheeks to silence her, "I'm asking HIM," he turned back to the Doctor, "Sir? Can you tell us who you are?"

Angel gave a small smile, "We're no one."

~8~

Lights flashed as the Doctor's criminal photo was taken, the guards ordering him to turn and face forward, then the side. But even as he did, his gaze remained locked on Angel.

~8~

"You will be taken from this place to the Lunar Penal Colony," the guard stated, "There to be held without trial, you may not appeal against this sentence," none of them made a move to acknowledge him, though Lynda did shift uncomfortably, "Is that understood?" no reply, so he turned to the gate and pushed it open.

"Let's do it," the Doctor said to Jack.

They jumped to their feet, Angel pulling Lynda back as Jack threw punches and kicks as he went, leading them out of the cell, knocking one guard aside while the Doctor threw another into a wall. The boys each grabbed a weapon and ran for the lift, the girls behind them.

~8~

"Oh, my God," the male programmer breathed, watching this on a monitor, "Now we're in trouble."

The group piled into the lift, "Floor 500!" the Doctor shouting out as the lift began.

He reached over and pressed a button, setting off the alarm on Floor 500, "Clear the floor! He's on his way up here. With a gun!" the staff all stood hurriedly, looking at the door to the lift as they backed away.

"This is an emergency!" the female programmer turned to the Controller who had refused to stop the lift, "You've _got_ to close the lift!"

"All staff are reminded that solar flares commence in delta point two…" the Controller ignored her.

"Never mind solar flares!" the male shouted, "He's gonna KILL you!"

The lift doors opened and the staff turned around to see the group stride out, the men armed to the teeth, "Ok!" Jack shouted, "Move away from the desk! Nobody try anything clever. Everybody clears!" the staff scattered as the Doctor stalked towards the Controller, Angel running after him, "Stand to the sides. And _stay_ there."

"Who's in charge of this place?" the Doctor shouted up at her, brandishing his gun.

"...18...19...20..." the Controller counted.

"This Satellite's more than a Game Station."

"79..."

"Where's Rose Tyler?"

"All staff are reminded that solar flares…"

"I want an answer!"

"When?" Angel asked, stepping forward, something about the solar flares just striking her.

"...in delta point one," the Controller finished.

"She can't reply," the male programmer called as the Doctor readied to ask another question. He swung the gun around to the staff, making them all flinch, "Don't shoot!"

"Oh, don't be so thick," the Doctor scoffed, "Like I was _ever_ gonna _shoot_ ," he tossed the Defabricator to the programmer, "Captain, we've got more guards on the way up. Secure the exits."

"Yes, sir!" Jack shouted, running off.

"You, what were you saying?" the Doctor turned back to the male programmer.

"But...I've got your gun…" he began.

"Ok, so shoot us," the Doctor rolled his eyes, "Why can't she answer?"

"She's, um..." he glanced down at the gun, "Can I put this down?"

"If you want, just hurry up."

"Thanks," he set it down, "Sorry. Um...the Controller is linked to the transmissions. The entire output goes through her brain, you're not a member of staff so she doesn't recognize your existence."

"What's her name?" Angel asked softly.

The Doctor turned to see her still staring up at the woman, sadly.

"I don't know. She was installed when she was five years old. That's the only life she's ever known."

"Door's sealed," Jack reported, "We should be safe for about ten minutes."

"Keep an eye on 'em," the Doctor nodded.

"But that stuff you were saying about something going on with the Game Station," the male programmer added, "I think you're right. Unauthorized transmats...it's been going on for _years_."

"Show me."

"You're not allowed in there!" the female programmer yelled, seeing Jack about to put his hand on the pad to open Archive Six, "Archive Six is out of bounds!"

Jack just lifted his guns, "Do I look like an out-of-bounds sort of guy?"

"You won't need those Jack," Angel called, not even looking away from the Controller, "She was hiding the TARDIS for us," she gave a small nod towards the Controller, "Go on in, see if the TARDIS figured out what's going on."

Jack looked surprised by that bit of information, but turned and headed in anyway, smiling as, sure enough, the TARDIS was right there. He quickly walked to it, and got inside, running to the console, and checking the monitor, his expression growing puzzled, "What the hell..."

Back in the main room the Controller announced, "Solar flare activity at delta point zero..."

"If you're not holding us hostage, then open the door and let us out," the female programmer turned to the Doctor impatiently, "The staff are _terrified_."

"That's the same staff who execute _hundreds_ of contestants every day…" the Doctor began.

"That's not our fault, we're just doing our jobs."

"And with that sentence, you just lost the right to even talk to me," his eyes narrowed in disgust, "Now _back off_."

Lynda flinched at the sound of his voice as the female programmer stared at him in shock.

Just then one of the screens went to static and the lights flickered.

"That's just the solar flares," the male programmer reassured them, "They interfere with the broadcast signal, so this place automatically powers down. Planet Earth gets a few repeats. It's all quite normal."

"Quickly," Angel said, they looked at her to see her looking at the Controller intently, "You've got _moments_."

"Doctor..." the Controller breathed.

The Doctor blinked, stunned for a moment or two.

"I think she wants you," Lynda nudged him.

"Angel..." the Controller whispered as well.

"What is it?" Angel asked as the Doctor hurried over to her.

"Doctor...where's the Doctor? And the Angel?"

"We're here," the Doctor called.

"Can't see. I'm blind. So blind. All my life, blind. All I can see is numbers, but I saw _you_. I saw the both of you, burning _so brightly_..."

"What do you want?"

"The solar flares hid her," Angel answered, "They can't hear her."

"Who can't?" the Doctor frowned, looking at her.

"I…I don't know," Angel frowned as well, not sure why she'd said that.

"My…my masters," the Controller answered, "They always listen but they can't hear me now. The sun...the sun is so bright..."

"Who are your masters?" he asked her.

"They wired my head, their name is forbidden. They control my thoughts, my masters...my masters, I had to be careful. They monitor the transmissions but they don't watch the programs. I could hide you inside the games."

Everyone in the room turned to listen to her intently.

"My friend was lost inside your games."

"Doesn't matter."

"Don't you DARE tell me…"

"Doctor," Angel cut him off, putting a gentle hand on his shoulder to quiet him, "There isn't much time."

"They've been hiding," the Controller continued, "My masters, hiding in the dark space, watching and shaping the Earth...so, so, _so_ many years...they've _always_ been there. Guiding humanity, hundreds and hundreds of years…"

"Who are they?" he asked her.

"They wait. They plan and grow in numbers, they're strong now. So strong, my masters…"

"Who are they?!"

"They are not yet aware of the Angel," she suddenly looked right at him, "But they speak of _you_. My masters, they fear the Doctor."

"Tell me!" he shouted, stepping forward, "Who _are_ they?"

At that moment the Controller gasped, the power turning back on, and she resumed counting, "20...21...22..."

"When's the next solar flare?" the Doctor spun to the male programmer.

"Two years," Angel answered before the man could, blinking a bit as she stared at the Controller.

"Fat lot of good that is," the Doctor grumbled, stalking off.

Angel shook her head, trying to clear her thoughts, and wandered over to one of the computers, sitting down heavily in one of the chairs. Her gaze moved to the monitor before her, then to the Controller for a moment, before she started to type hesitantly. There were numbers, numbers she could see in her mind, codes, but...she wasn't sure _why_...

"We've got the TARDIS!" Jack appeared in the room.

"We're not leaving now!" the Doctor told him.

"No, but the TARDIS worked it out," he turned and shoved the male programmer out of his chair, "You'll wanna watch this," the Doctor turned to watch, "Lynda, could you stand over there for me please?"

"I…I just wanna go home…" Lynda remarked.

"It'll only take a second. Could you stand in that spot, quick as you can?" Lynda walked over, "Everybody watching? Ok...three, two, one…"

He pressed a button and the disintegrator shot down and hit her, leaving nothing but a billow of smoke. The Doctor looked at Jack in a cross between shock and incomprehension. Jack just pushed a button again and Lynda reappeared next to the Doctor, slightly dazed but unharmed.

"...what the hell was _that_?" she shook her head as Angel looked up, her eyes wide, but slowly started to smile.

"It's a _transmat_ beam. _Not_ a disintegrator, a secondary transmat system," Jack grinned, "People don't get killed in the games! They get transported across space! Angel was right, Rose is still alive!"

The Doctor laughed, so relieved. It wasn't that he didn't believe Angel's feeling about it, but he wasn't sure if it was real or a wishful thought. Now he knew.

~8~

Rose awoke on a floor, looking around as something caught her eye, "It can't be…" she breathed, scrambling to her feet and backing up with a gasp, "But you're dead...I saw you die!" she backed against a wall, trying to edge to the side only for a sucker arm to stick out and block her.

~8~

"She's out there somewhere!" the Doctor shouted, running from control to control.

"Doctor!" the Controller cried. They looked up to see her struggling to communicate, betraying her masters, "Coordinates five point six point one…"

"Don't!" the Doctor shouted, typing frantically, "The solar flare's gone, they'll hear you!"

"Point four three four…no my masters, _no_! I defy you! Sigma seven seven…" she screamed as the wires fell away, leaving her spot empty, dust on the ground.

"They took her…"

"Oh you think?" Angel asked.

They looked over at her as she smiled wider...

~8~

The Controller appeared on the floor of a spaceship, holes all over her body where the wires entered her. She stood up, her blind eyes staring forward, defiant, proud, "Oh, my masters..." she said as they glided towards her, "You can kill me. For I have brought your destruction!"

There was the sound of a laser shot moments _after_ a bright yellow light filled the room.

~8~

The Controller gasped as she reappeared on her platform as Angel hit a button.

"Fantastic!" the Doctor shouted, rushing over to Angel, hugging her tightly as Jack ran to the Controller's side, helping her up and down the platform. He handed her over to one of the staff, to lead her off somewhere safer.

"Can't you do that for Rose?" Jack ran back to Angel and the Doctor.

"I could only reverse the last transmat," she said, "I wasn't sure how it was working till you showed us with Lynda, but it's a lot like the teleports in the TARDIS. She was the last before the Controller…"

The Doctor nodded as the male programmer called out, "I've got the records," they ran over to him, Jack pushing him out of his way to sit down, looking at the records, "Look, use that…" he handed Jack a disk, "It might contain the final numbers. I kept a log of all the unscheduled transmissions."

"Nice...thanks..." Jack glanced up at him, holding out a hand and eyeing him in an entirely un-platonic manner, "Captain Jack Harkness, by the way..."

"I'm Davitch Pavale," he greeted, taking the offered hand.

"Nice to meet you, Davitch Pavale..." Jack grinned.

"Time and a place Jack," Angel chastised lightly.

"Are you saying this entire setup's been a disguise all along?" the female programmer asked, seeing that her partner may have had a point.

"Going _way_ back," the Doctor nodded, "Installing the Jagrafess a hundred years ago. Someone's been playing a long game. Controlling the Human Race from behind the scenes for generations."

Jack handed a small device over to the Doctor, "Click on this," he did so and an image of empty space materialized over their heads, "The transmat delivers to that point. Right on the edge of the solar system."

"There's nothing there," the female programmer shook her head.

"Nothing you can _see_ ," Angel muttered.

"It _looks_ like nothing," the Doctor agreed, recalling the last time Angel had made that remark, "'Cos that's what this satellite does. Underneath the transmission, there's another signal…"

"Doing what?" Davitch shook his head.

"Hiding whatever's out there. Hiding it from sonar, radar, scanner..." they all looked at the blank space, "There's something sitting righton top of Planet Earth...but it's completely invisible. If I cancel the signal..." he leaned forward, pressing a few buttons, and when he looked back up the space was no longer empty. There was a large spaceship revolving slowly.

The Doctor and Angel stared at it, eyes wide in horror as the image zoomed out to reveal more and _more_ spaceships.

"That's impossible!" Jack exclaimed, "I _know_ those ships...they were _destroyed_."

"Not quite," Angel replied quietly, the Doctor quickly taking her hand as they stared at the remnant of their past.

"Who did?" the female programmer asked, "Who are they?"

"Two hundred ships," the Doctor muttered, "More than 2,000 on board each one. That's just about half a million of them."

"Half a million what?" Davitch frowned.

"Daleks," the Doctor and Angel answered at once.

~8~

A Dalek entered an area of the spaceship where several others were stationed, "Alert! Alert! We are detected!"

"It is the Doctor!" another cried, "He has located us!"

Rose huddled against the foot of the wall and stared around at them, wide eyed.

"Open communications channel!"

The first Dalek swiveled around to face Rose, "The female will stand. Stand!" she stood quickly as they looked up to see an image appeared before them, the Doctor, Angel, Jack, Lynda, the programmers, and the staff staring back at Rose and the Daleks.

~8~

"I will talk to the Doctor," a Dalek shouted.

"Oh, will you?" the Doctor asked, "That's nice. Hello!" he threw them a mocking wave, his rather fake grin fading rapidly.

"The Dalek Stratagem nears completion. The Fleet is almost ready. You will not intervene."

"Oh, really? Why's that then?"

"We have your associate. You will obey or she will be exterminated."

"No."

Everyone looked at the Doctor shocked, save Angel, who was looking at the Daleks, shaking just a bit, she didn't have the fondest memories of them, the last one she'd met having killed both her sister and herself.

Rose's mouth dropped open.

"Explain yourself!"

"I said 'no.'"

"What is the meaning of this negative?"

"It means 'no.'"

"But she will be destroyed."

"No!" the Doctor jumped to his feet, "'Cos _this_ is what I'm gonna do, I'm gonna rescue her. I'm gonna save Rose Tyler from the middle of the Dalek Fleet, and then I'm gonna save the Earth, and then, just to finish off, I'm gonna wipe every last STINKING Dalek outta the sky!"

"But you have no weapons! No defenses! No plan!"

He nodded, "Yeah. And doesn't that scare you to death?" he smirked, "'Cos guess what else I've got. You lot are scared of _one_ Time Lord eh?" he reached out and took Angel's hand, tugging her forward, "How do you think you'll be facing TWO?!" he laughed as the Daleks actually rolled back at the introduction of a second of the enemy race.

"Rose?" Angel called up, shaking her head, needing to focus, she _had_ to help Rose.

"Yeah?" Rose beamed.

"We're on our way," she winked, as the Doctor tapped the device, shutting off communications.

~8~

"The Doctor is initiating hostile action!" a Dalek reported.

"The Stratagem must advance," a second stated, "Begin the invasion of Earth!"

They spun around wildly, Rose gasping but they took no notice of her.

"The Doctor and the Time Lady will be exterminated!" a third Dalek called.

"Exterminate!" the Daleks chanted as Rose looked around in terror.

To be continued…

* * *

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Did you see the tiny shift in the show? What Angel did? Well, someone's alive who wasn't alive in the actual show...that'll be a hint of things to come. And, can I say, there is most certainly a reason for it, but one we won't see for a VERY long time :)
> 
> Fun note, I've picked out a theme song I see as being Angel...Fantastic Voyage by (ironically) Future World Music :)


	22. The Parting of the Ways: Saving Rose

The Daleks were in a state of panic when one of them rounded on Rose, "You know the Doctor and the Time Lady! You understand them! You will predict their actions!"

"I don't know!" she shouted, backing up as it advanced dangerously on her, "And even if I did, I wouldn't tell ya..."

"Predict! Predict! Predict!"

"TARDIS detected!" a second Dalek glided into the room, "In flight."

"Launch missiles!" the first Dalek ordered his fellows, "Exterminate!"

"You can't!" Rose shouted desperately, "The TARDIS hasn't got any defenses, you're gonna kill them!"

"You have predicted correctly."

~8~

The TARDIS flew towards the Dalek ship as it released two missiles, "We've got incoming!" Jack shouted, seeing them on the monitor as he, the Doctor, and Angel frantically worked the controls. The two missiles hit them, exploding in flames, but leaving them unharmed, "The extrapolator's working! We've got a fully functional force field. Try saying _that_ when you're drunk..."

"And for my next trick..." the Doctor began as he and Angel worked on a very precise landing.

"And just in case we've got company…" Angel turned quickly and tossed Jack the Defabricator before getting back to work.

~8~

The Daleks and Rose could hear the sound of the TARDIS materializing as a breeze blew Rose's hair. She looked around with wide eyes, seeing the TARDIS slowly appear around her and one of the Daleks. She spun around to find herself inside the TARDIS, the Doctor and Angel by the console.

"Rose!" Angel shouted, "Get down!"

"Get down, Rose!" the Doctor called as well.

Rose threw herself to the floor.

"Exterminate!" the Dalek fired at Jack.

He deflected the ray and fired back at the Dalek which exploded with a scream. Rose winced, struggling to her feet as smoke billowed from the remains of the Dalek. Angel rushed to help her up.

"You did it!" she hugged Angel quickly before turning to hug the Doctor as well, "Feels like I haven't seen you in _years_."

"Told you we were coming," Angel remarked, putting a hand on the girl's shoulder.

"Never doubted it," Rose beamed as they pulled away.

"I did!" the Doctor admitted, eyeing her, "You alright?"

"Yeah," she nodded, looking at the two of them, "You?"

"We're fine," Angel shrugged before her gaze was pulled to the Dalek, she frowned, walking over to it and kneeling down.

"Been better," the Doctor admitted, following Angel with his gaze as he often found himself doing, before joining her as Jack approached.

"Hey, don't _I_ get a hug?" he asked.

"Ah, come here!" Rose turned to him.

"I was talking to them," Jack muttered, before hugging Rose close, "Welcome home!"

"Oh, thought I'd never see you again."

"Oh, you were lucky. I was just a one-shot wonder. Drained the gun of all its power supply. Now it's just a piece of junk."

"It doesn't seem Dalek," Angel muttered quietly, looking at the exposed remains, unable to put her finger on what was off about it.

The Doctor pulled out the sonic and flashed the Dalek with it, both of them shocked at the results.

"Patience, my brethren…" a large voice boomed outside.

They looked over at the dead Dalek quickly, for one more examination, Rose and Jack joining them as well, looking at the mutant inside.

"You said they were extinct," Rose looked at the Doctor, "How come they're still alive?"

"One minute they're the greatest threat in the Universe," Jack shrugged, "The next minute they vanished out of time and space."

"There was a bigger war to be fought..." Angel muttered, "The Time War..."

"I thought that was just a legend!"

"We were there," the Doctor said, nodding at Angel, "The war between the Daleks and the Time Lords. With the whole of creation at stake. Our people were destroyed, but they took the Daleks with them," he sighed, "I almost thought it was _worth_ it. Now it turns out they died for _nothing_."

"There's _thousands_ of them now," Rose said gently, "We could hardly stop ONE _._ What're we gonna do?"

"No good stood round here chin-wagging!" the Doctor said cheerily, getting up, "Human Race, you'd gossip all day. The Daleks have got the answers, let's go and meet the neighbors," he grabbed Angel's hand, helping her up, before turning and walking down the ramp with her towards the door.

"You can't go out there…" Rose shouted urgently, but they already stepped through.

"Exterminate!" the Daleks shouted, "Exterminate! Exterminate!" they fired their bolts at the duo but they dissolved in the force field of the TARDIS, keeping them safe.

Jack and Rose cautiously popped their heads out and stepped out.

"Is that it?" the Doctor eyed them as they fell silent, "Useless! Nul points," he leaned on the corner of the TARDIS, leaving Angel standing there, looking around at the Daleks, "It's alright, come on out. That force field can hold back anything."

" _Almost_ anything," Jack reminded him.

"...yes. But I wasn't gonna tell _them_ that. Thanks."

"Sorry."

The Daleks were quiet, their eyestalks focused on the Time Lords as the Doctor stepped back to Angel's side as he spoke, "D'you know what they call me in the ancient legends of the Dalek Homeworld? The Oncoming Storm. You might've removed all your emotions...but I reckon that right down deep in your DNA, there's one little spark left. And that's fear," the Daleks eyestalks shifted nervously, "Doesn't it just BURN when you face me? So, tell me, how did you survive the Time War?"

"They survived through _me_ ," the booming voice answered.

They turned and looked over to see a giant Dalek, the mutant in a rather large set of open armor, towering above them.

The Doctor eyed him, open mouthed in shock, "Rose...Captain...this is the Emperor of the Daleks."

"You destroyed us, Doctor. The Dalek Race died in your inferno, but my ship survived, falling through time, crippled but _alive_."

"I get it."

"Do not interrupt!" a Dalek yelled, echoed by two others.

Jack and Rose flinched but the Doctor and Angel merely looked at them, the Doctor unwavering, Angel shifting uncomfortably. The Doctor glanced at her out of the corner of his eye before reaching out to squeeze her hand a moment, realizing this must be hard for her given what the last Dalek they'd encountered had done. He'd tried to protect her then, he'd failed, he _wouldn't_ fail again, not ever, he refused. He'd keep her safe, he'd look out for her as they'd both promised when Rose had saved her father. He felt his hearts thump painfully though as he looked at the Daleks that surrounded them.

He probably _shouldn't_ have mentioned that she was a Time Lady, keep her safe, keep her from becoming another target...but he _knew_ Daleks, he knew the _one thing_ that would scare them, shake them up, get them to make mistakes...finding out he _wasn't_ alone, that there was ANOTHER Time Lord out there to help him defeat them. He needed them nervous, he needed them distracted, and Angel, bless her, had seemed to sense that. She'd stayed strong, stayed by his side, gone right there with him to save Rose, been the one to tell Rose they were coming.

She really was remarkable like that.

"I think you're forgetting something," the Doctor turned to them, knowing the danger of the situation was greater than the time he had to think such thoughts on Angel, because really, he knew he could easily do that forever, "I'm the Doctor. And if there's one thing I can do, it's _talk_. I've got five billion languages, and you haven't got _one_ way of stopping me. So if anybody's gonna shut up, it's YOU!" he spat the last word so vehemently that the Daleks actually rolled back. He grinned and turned back to the Emperor, "Oh, sorry, so rude of me. This is the Angel, a Time Lady."

"Nice to meet you," she nodded, giving them a timid smile, she didn't think she'd ever feel confident before a Dalek given what the last had done to her sister, despite the Doctor saving _her_ from it, stopping it from dealing another, more deadly, laser blast.

"Okey doke, now that introductions are out of the way," the Doctor paused in thought, "So, where were we?"

"You were telling them to shut up," Angel reminded him, not quite catching the rhetorical nature of the question.

He just gave her a smile for it, he really _did_ find that trait of hers adorable.

"We waited here in the dark space, damaged but rebuilding," the Emperor continued, "Centuries passed, and we quietly infiltrated the systems of Earth. Harvesting the waste of humanity. The prisoners, the refugees, the dispossessed, they all came to us. The bodies were filtered, pulped, sifted," Rose looked sick at that, "The seed of the Human Race is perverted. Only one cell in a billion was fit to be nurtured."

"You used the _dead_ to make an army of Daleks?" Angel breathed, _really_ hoping that she'd _actually_ gotten it _wrong_ , but the look on the Doctor's face told her otherwise.

"That makes them...half human," Rose frowned.

"Those words are blasphemy!" the Emperor roared.

"Do not blaspheme!" the Daleks chanted.

"Did he say...blasphemy?" Angel looked at the Doctor in shock, when did Daleks start using words like _that_?

"Everything human has been purged," the Emperor affirmed, "I cultivated pure and blessed Dalek."

"Since when did the Daleks have a concept of blasphemy?" the Doctor asked them, shaking his head.

"I reached into the dirt and made new life. I am the God of all Daleks!"

"Worship him!" the Daleks echoed, "Worship him! Worship him!"

"They've gone _mad_ ," Angel whispered, eyeing them all.

"A hundred years hiding in silence, that's enough to drive anyone insane," the Doctor agreed, staring at them with something like pity.

Angel shook her head, she could relate to that a bit. For fifty years she survived in mostly silence, save for the screams of the Dalek, her own screams, the shouts of other humans as they questioned her and poked at her...left alone for most of it, by herself with no one, not even another of her species there...but this...there was something so much _more_ to it, she could just _tell_ , "It's _worse_ than that…"

"Driven mad by their own flesh. The stink of humanity. You hate your own existence. And that makes them more deadly than ever," he looked up at the Emperor, "We're going."

"You may NOT leave my presence!" it shouted.

But they already turned and walked into the TARDIS, the Daleks powerless to stop them.

"Stay where you are!" a Dalek ordered.

The Doctor simply gave them a mocking grin before shutting the doors behind them.

"Exterminate!" the Daleks shouted, echoing, firing fruitlessly at the doors.

The Doctor leaned his head against the inside of the doors, helpless, the battle cries of the Daleks echoing, ringing in his ears, dragging hated memories to the surface…

And then something pressed up against him.

He felt warm arms wrap around him and a head rest against his back, just squeezing him in comfort, offering their strength, but more importantly offering him understanding, offering someone to share his pain in. He turned around in her arms and hugged Angel to him as the cries of the Daleks continued.

~8~

The TARDIS materialized at the end of Floor 500, the Doctor, Rose, and Jack marching out.

Angel hesitated inside, glancing down at the two bracelets Jack had used on the Doctor and Margaret, dangling on a lever, and over to the Doctor's sonic as it rested on the console. She quickly grabbed both, flashing the sonic over the bracelets, reprogramming them quickly before running out, slipping the bracelets into her pocket, "Doctor," she tossed him the sonic, "You forgot this."

He caught it and turned back to the remaining staff, striding over to the controls, "Turn everything up. All transmissions, wide open, full power. Now! Do it!"

"What does that do?" Davitch frowned but moved to do so.

"Stops the Daleks from transmatting on board. How did you get on? Did you contact Earth?"

"Well, we tried to warn them, but all they did was suspend our license because we stopped the programs."

"And the planet's just sitting there, defenseless," he remarked before seeming to notice Lynda was still there, "Lynda, what're you still doing on board?" he rounded on Davitch, "I told you to evacuate everyone."

"She wouldn't go."

"Didn't wanna leave ya," Lynda smiled at them as Rose looked her up and down, not liking the implication.

"There weren't enough shuttles anyway, or _I_ wouldn't be here..." the female programmer added, "The last shuttle to leave was a med-ship with the Controller on it. We've got about a hundred people stranded on Floor 0."

~8~

People crowded around Floor 0, just milling around, Roddrick among them, "Listen, listen, my name's Roddrick," he told a guard, "I won the game! Where's my money?" the people seemed to be panicking around him though he didn't notice, running to a comm. instead, "Is anyone listening? Where's my money?!"

~8~

"Oh, my God," Davitch gaped, staring at the screen, "The Fleet is moving. They're on their way."

They looked up to see the Dalek ships floating through space, drifting at them and the Earth.

~8~

"Purify the Earth with fire!" the Emperor commanded to his lines of Daleks, "The planet will become my temple and we shall rise. _This_ will be our paradise!"

~8~

The Doctor quickly ran down the terminals, ripping wires out of them, while the others watched him, clearly having _no idea_ what he was doing or why he was doing it, "Dalek plan, big mistake," he said, speaking faster than most could keep up with, including Angel and Rose, though Jack seemed to be following, "Because what have they left me with? Anyone? Anyone? Oh, come on, it's _obvious_. A great big transmitter, this station," Jack stared at him in concentration, thinking it through, "If I can change the signal, fold it back, sequence it…anyone?"

"You've gotta be kidding," Jack's eyes widened.

"Give the man a medal!"

"A Delta Wave?"

"A Delta Wave!"

"Oh my God," Angel shook her head, before running to help yank the wires out of the next row.

"What's a Delta Wave?" Rose frowned.

"A wave of Van Cassadyne energy," Jack told her, "Fries your brain, stand in the way of a Delta Wave and your head gets barbequed!"

"And this place can transmit a MASSIVE wave!" the Doctor grinned, "Wipe out the Daleks!"

Rose opened her mouth to say something but Lynda beat her to it, "Well, get started and do it then!"

Rose shut her mouth, disgruntled.

"Trouble is, wave this size, building this big, brain as clever as mine, should take about…" he frowned, "Oh…"

"Three days," Angel called, not even looking up from the wires.

He nodded, "How long till the Fleet arrive?"

Davitch turned to the computer, but again Angel answered, "22 minutes."

"She's right," he called.

The Doctor would have beamed at how well she was doing with her sense of time in relation to what were probably her 'feelings' on the situation, but with only 22 minutes left, he truly didn't have the time for even that as he frantically pulled another wire out, staring at the end of it.

"We've now got a force field so they can't blast us out of the sky," Jack said, getting the shields up at the computer. Rose, Lynda, and the programmers moved around him as he explained, "But that doesn't stop the Daleks from _physically_ invading."

"Do they know about the Delta Wave?" Davitch looked at him.

"They'll have worked it out at the same time. So, if they want to stop the Doctor and Angel, that means they've got to get to this level, 500," he pointed to the layout of the station, "Now, I can concentrate the extrapolator around the top six levels, 500 to 495. So, they'll penetrate the station below that at level 494 and fight their way up."

"Who're they fighting?"

"Us," Jack looked up at them.

"And...what're we fighting _with_?"

"The guards had guns with bastic bullets, that's enough to blow a Dalek wide open."

"There's FIVE of us," the female programmer said, not even glancing back at the Doctor and Angel at work.

"Rose, you can help Angel," the Doctor called, "We need _all_ these wires stripped bare."

Rose turned and walked off as the female programmer sighed, "Right! Now there's FOUR of us!"

"Then let's move it!" Jack stood, "Into the lift! Isolate the lift controls!"

The programmers hurried off as Lynda approached the Doctor, "I…I just wanna say, um...thanks, I s'pose. And...I'll do my best!"

"Me too," the Doctor nodded. They awkwardly tried to decide on a way to say goodbye, whether it was hug, handshake, or kiss on the cheek. They finally settled for a handshake, laughing embarrassedly at themselves.

Angel smiled softly, but frowned when she saw Rose glaring daggers at Lynda before the woman turned to head off, "Lynda!" she called, running after her to say goodbye as Jack walked up to the Doctor, "I just wanted to say thank you too," she smiled at the girl before glancing back to see the Doctor's back to them, "And give you this…" she handed her one of Jack's bracelets, "For…good luck?" she added, hoping it was a believable human gesture.

Lynda smiled, "Thanks!" and put it on, hugging Angel quickly before rushing off.

Angel watched her go a moment before slipping on the other bracelet and turning back to the Doctor and Rose.

"It's been fun!" Jack cheered, "But I guess this is goodbye."

"Don't talk like that," Rose cut in, "They'll do it. You just watch 'em."

"Rose..." Jack cupped her face in his hands and looked at her intensely, sincerely, "You are worth fighting for," he placed a brief kiss on her lips before turning to the Doctor, grinning, "Wish I'd never met you, Doctor!" he cupped the Doctor's face as well, "I was much better off as a coward," and kissed him the same way as Rose, then turned to Angel, looking at her a moment, "Sorry Angie, you're _way_ too much like a sister to me."

And it was true.

At first, he'd been admittedly a little putoff that she seemed so unresponsive to his flirting methods and charm. But...really, it had worked out so much better because of that. She didn't just see a pretty face or a sculpted body, but a _person_. He knew the effect he had on most humans and it was...refreshing...to meet someone who _didn't_ fall for him. It was...nice...that she was interested in getting to know Jack Harkness and not getting to know him in bed. Of course, that was _after_ he'd finally stopped trying to actively flirt with her, something he was certain the Doctor was grateful for if the way the man had glowered at him whenever he did so was anything to go by. He actually felt a little guilty for making the girl so uncomfortable in his advances, she was just so sweet and innocent in how little she understood of what others said or the meanings behind their actions, almost naive in a way. It made him feel like an overprotective big brother, like he had to look out for her, make sure she was alright and not being taken advantage of. She was sweet and kind and even though she was older than him by centuries, so young at heart.

She wasn't Angel, the Time Lady, not to him. To him, she was Angie, his...to coin an old Earth phrase...'sister from another mister.'

She laughed, "That's alright Jack," she reached forward and hugged him tightly a moment before he pulled back.

Jack pointed at the lift, "See ya in hell!" and ran off.

"I'm rather glad he didn't kiss me," Angel remarked as they watched him go.

"Why not?" Rose asked.

"He's like a brother to me too. That would have been a _very_ awkward first kiss."

She turned and went to work, stripping the ends of the wires, as Rose and the Doctor stared at her, one shocked and the other surprised/pleased/intrigued/relieved.

"You've never been kissed?" Rose asked her, eyes wide, "Like... _never_?"

"Never danced either," she replied, just working on.

"And you're _how_ old?"

"794."

Rose blinked, completely flabbergasted at her response, when they heard the ping of the lift. She looked over to see Jack getting in with Lynda, his face grim, saluting them before the doors shut. She glanced at the Doctor, "He's gonna be alright...isn't he?"

The Doctor just turned and worked on the wires.

"Angel?" Rose asked, knowing that the girl had 'feelings' about things, the Doctor had mentioned to her and Jack that Angel was special and a little about what that meant, "Will he?"

Angel paused, looking at the wires, "I hope so."

~8~

Jack stood on a box in the middle of Floor 0, surrounded by the stranded contestants, all babbling with panic. He fired a few rounds of the gun he'd grabbed into the air, making them jump and fall silent, "One last time. Any more volunteers?" there was silence as they stood there, a small group of seven volunteers standing away from them, including Lynda and the two programmers. Some contestants shook their heads, "There's an army about to invade this station. I need every last citizen to monitor defense!"

"Don't listen to him!" Roddrick pushed forward, "There aren't any Daleks! They disappeared _thousands_ of years ago!"

Despite his words the clipboard woman from 'The Weakest Link,' the floor manager, put herself forward, nodding at Jack.

"Thanks," Jack nodded at her, "As for the rest of you...the Daleks will enter the station at Floor 494 and as far as I can tell, they'll head up. Not down. But that's _not_ a promise. So here's a few words of advice: keep quiet and, if you hear fighting up above, if you hear us _dying_ , _then_ tell me that the Daleks aren't real," he glared pointedly at Roddrick, " _Don't_ make _a sound_ ," he turned to the volunteers, "Let's go," he jumped off the box and headed towards the lifts, entering with the eight men and women.

~8~

Rose sat on a box next to the Doctor and Angel as they busily worked in the middle row of desks, the Doctor calling out an instruction or two to Angel as she worked, trusting her a little more with the mechanics behind making a Delta Wave than a human as he'd set Rose to just strip the rest of the wires.

"Suppose..." Rose began, but fell silent.

The Doctor glanced at her after a moment, "What?"

"Nothing," Rose shook her head.

"It wasn't nothing," Angel looked up as well, "It was 'suppose.'"

Rose gave her a small smile before sighing, "No, I was just thinking...I mean, obviously you _can't_ , but...you've got a time machine. Why can't you just go back to last week and warn them?"

The Doctor turned back to the work, "Soon as the TARDIS lands in that second, we become part of events. Stuck in the timeline."

"Yeah, thought it'd be something like that…" she muttered, turning to finish stripping a few more wires.

"There's another thing the TARDIS could do...it could take us away..." Rose glanced at him, "We could leave. Let history take its course. We go to Marbella in 1989."

"Yeah, but you'd never do that," she replied softly, "Not you, not Angel either."

"No, but you could ask," he told her.

She fell silent.

"You never even _considered_ it, did you?" Angel smiled at her, pride in her eyes at how brave the human was being.

"Well, I'm just too good!" Rose laughed.

The computer whirred in the background and the Doctor looked over at it, "The Delta Wave's started building. How long does it need?" he looked at Angel for a guess, but she frowned grimly.

He leapt to his feet, running to the computer, Rose following as Angel solemnly got back to her work, there was no time to waste. The Doctor plopped himself in front of a monitor as Rose peered over his shoulder, pressing a few buttons, his face falling.

"Is that bad?" Rose asked, but his head just sunk, "Ok, it's bad. How bad is it?"

The Doctor suddenly perked up and leapt to his feet, his eyes bright, "Rose Tyler, you're a GENIUS!" he shouted gleefully, smacking a small kiss on her forehead, "We _can_ do it! If I use the TARDIS to cross my old timeline...yes!" he shot off towards the TARDIS, Rose close behind, running up to the console with him as he turned and pointed to a lever, "Hold that down and _keep_ position."

"What's it do?" she asked, not even noticing how Angel hadn't joined them.

"Cancels the buffers," he replied, putting something into the monitor, "If I'm _very_ clever, and I'm _more_ than clever, I'm BRILLIANT, I might just save the world. Or rip it apart..."

Rose held down the lever, "I'd go for the first one."

"Me too," he beamed, before looking around, "I've got to get Angel! Hold on to that lever!" and then he turned, running out of the TARDIS, calling for Angel, shutting the door behind him.

He stopped short, seeing Angel standing there, a sad, _knowing_ smile on her face. He slowly walked over to her and turned around to look at the TARDIS, standing beside her. She took his hand as he raised the sonic, pointing it at the doors, and flicking it on.

The engines groaned and started up.

"Doctor, what're you doing?" they heard Rose call from inside, "Can I take my hand off? It's moving," he didn't lower his sonic, just continued pointing it, "Doctor, let me out!" Rose shouted, they could hear her near the door as the TARDIS began to fade, hammering on it, "Let me out! Angel help! Doctor, what've you done? Angel!"

They watched grimly as the TARDIS faded away completely, taking her cries with it. He lowered his sonic and looked at the ground, sad.

"You did the right thing," Angel reassured him, "You're _saving_ her."

He nodded, "We need to hurry."

She turned and quickly got back to work, the Doctor helping a moment later.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We're going to find out what Angel's name among the Daleks is, very soon, right in the next chapter in fact :) Angel's age, as promised, in the 700s, believe me there is a deliberate reason why she's 794 which we'll find out before we get to 11, I promise :) We also see more of how Jack feels about her and how he sees her and why. I hope it's believable. I sort of felt like, with his pheromones and the effect they have on people that, maybe, he'd sort of like the fact that there's someone who isn't affected by him in that way, someone who can see past the pheromones and just know Jack as a person. And with how sweet Angel is, couldn't you see Jack looking at her like a sister? :)
> 
> Though, here's a question...what did Angel do to the bracelets, the one she gave Lynda? I suppose, we'll find that out very soon too won't we? :)


	23. The Parting of the Ways: Facing the Daleks

Rose pounded on the door frantically when a hologram of the Doctor appeared, standing before the console behind her, facing the door, flickering, "This is Emergency Program One," the program said as she spun around to face it, "Rose, now listen, this is important. If this message is activated, then it can only mean one thing," she stared wide eyed, "We must be in danger. And I mean _fatal_. I'm dead or about to die any second with no chance of escape.

She lunged forward, "No!"

"And that's ok. Hope it's a good death," she stopped at the top of the ramp, staring at him, "But I promised to look after you, and that's what I'm doing. The TARDIS is taking you home."

"I won't let you," she rushed up the remainder of the steps as the hologram just stared ahead, not looking at her.

"And I bet you're fussing and moaning now, typical. But hold on and just listen a bit more. The TARDIS can _never_ return for me. Emergency Program One means I'm facing an enemy that should _never_ get their hands on this machine. So this is what you should do, let the TARDIS die," her mouth dropped open as she moved to the side, leaning heavily against a Y-beam, "Just let this old box gather dust. No one can open it, no one will even notice it. Let it become a strange little thing standing on a street corner. And over the years, the world will move on and the box will be buried. And if you want to remember me, then you can do one thing. That's all. One thing," he turned his head to face her, as though he knew she was standing there, "Have a good life. Do that for me, Rose. Have a fantastic life."

She just watched as the hologram flickered and faded, "You can't _do_ this to me," she strode over to the console, "You _can't_!" she slammed down any button she could find, pulled all the levers, twisted every knob, "Take me back! Take me _back_!" but it didn't work, the engines just died down to a halt, landing. She ran over to the doors and rushed outside to find herself at the Powell Estate. She ran back in, _refusing_ to accept that, hitting the console, "Come on, fly. How do you fly? Come on, HELP ME!"

~8~

Mickey rushed around a corner, bolting down the street just as Rose stepped out of the TARDIS, defeated, leaning against the side of it as he caught up, "I _knew_ it!" he cried, "I was all the way down Clifton's Parade, and I heard the engines and I thought 'there's only one thing that makes a noise like that,'" he frowned, seeing her near tears, "What is it?" Rose just turned and looked at him, "Rose…what happened to the Doctor? And…and Angel?"

He'd grown quite fond of the girl the last time she'd been there and, he had to admit, he was worried about her.

Especially when Rose just pulled him to her, clinging to him as she cried.

~8~

"Rose, I've called up the internal laser codes," Jack came over the comm., "There should be a different number on every screen, can you read them out to me?"

"She's not here," Angel said quietly.

"Of all the times to take a leak!"

Angel frowned, looking up at that, "Humans leak?" she looked at the Doctor, wondering what on Earth humans could possibly leak, but he just shook his head, too solemn for even that to cheer him.

Jack though gave a little laugh, "When she gets back, tell her to read me the codes."

"She's not coming back," the Doctor added.

"What d'you mean? Where'd she go?"

"Just get on with your work."

"You took her home, didn't you?"

"Yeah."

"The Delta Wave...is it ever gonna be ready?"

"Tell him the truth," came a booming voice. They looked up to see the Emperor of the Daleks projected on the largest monitor, "There is _every_ possibility that the Delta Wave could be complete, but _no_ possibility of refining it. The Delta Wave must kill _every living thing_ in its path, with no distinction between Human and Dalek. All things will die. By _your_ hand."

"Doctor...the range of this transmitter covers the entire Earth," Jack reminded him warningly.

"You would destroy Daleks and Humans together. If I am God, the creator of all things, then what does that make _you_ , Doctor?"

"There are colonies out there," the Doctor countered, getting up, "The Human Race would survive in some shape or form, but you're the _only_ Daleks in existence. The _whole Universe_ is in danger if I let you live," he looked over at Jack on another screen, "Do you see, Jack? That's the decision I've got to make for every living thing."

"The decision WE'VE got to make," Angel corrected, walking over to him to look at Jack, "Die Human or survive as Daleks."

"What would you do?"

"You sent her home," Jack said, "She's safe. Keep working."

"But they will exterminate you!" the Emperor yelled.

Jack smirked, "Never doubted them, never will."

The Doctor grinned and strode across the room to the screen as Angel smiled in thanks to Jack as his screen turned off, "Now, you tell me, 'God of all Daleks,' 'cos there's one thing I never worked out. The words 'Bad Wolf,' spread across time and space. Everywhere, drawing me in. How'd you manage that?"

"I did nothing," it replied.

"Oh, come on. There's no secrets now, your worship."

"They are not part of my design. This is the truth of God."

And the monitor clicked off.

The Doctor raised his eyes to the Bad Wolf logo on the wall as Angel walked over to him, looking up at the words as well, frowning, "It really _isn't_ the Daleks," she said quietly, just knowing the words had far more of an impact, had more...meaning...than a Dalek could design.

"What do we do?" he asked her, at a loss.

He really didn't know what to do. Refine the Wave, kill the humans. Not refine the Wave, the Daleks would kill the humans. There really was no winning scenario in this entire mess and...it was times like these...where he always looked to her for help, for faith. She had such unshakable faith in him, an unbreakable belief that he could do it that, sometimes, he just needed ONE person to feel that way to feel it himself. And Angel, well...she truly lived up to her name, she was the most faithful person he'd ever met, not just in how she felt with others but how he felt about her. He had faith in her, trust in her, in a way he never had before. Not even on Gallifrey, not even with the mother of his children, he'd never really ever let anyone get that close, let anyone in. But Angel...he didn't understand why, but she'd slipped into his hearts without him even realizing it.

"We refine the Wave," she shrugged as though it were simple, "With two Time Lords working, we might just get it refined enough."

"You feel that?"

She shook her head slightly, "No," she answered bluntly, "But I _believe_ in that."

He smiled, there she went again, "You really are an angel, aren't you?"

She laughed, "Well we've got a god back there. Why not an angel?"

He laughed as well and they turned, dashing back to the Wave, working as fast as they could.

~8~

"And it's gone up-market, this place," Jackie commented as she and Mickey sat across from Rose in a chip shop, "They're doing little tubs of coleslaw now," Rose just looked out the window, not paying attention to them or her food, "It's not very nice. Tastes a bit sort of clinical."

"Have you tried that new pizza place down Minto Road?" Mickey glanced at Rose, concerned.

"What's it selling?"

"Pizza," he replied, knowing she was as distracted by Rose as he was.

"Oh, that's nice," she nodded, looking at Rose, still just gazing out the window, downcast, "Do they deliver?"

"Yeah!"

"Oh, Rose," Jackie pleaded, turning to her daughter completely, "Have something to eat..."

"200,000 years in the future," Rose muttered, tears in her voice, "They're _dying_ , they're _both_ dying, and there's NOTHING I can do."

"Well, like you said, 200,000 years, it's way off!"

"But it's _not_!" Rose finally turned to look at her, "It's _now_! That fight is happening _right now_ , and they're fighting for _us_! For the _whole planet_ , and I'm just _sitting_ here, eating _chips_!" she spat, angry, upset.

"Listen to me," Jackie leaned forward as Rose fell silent again, "God knows I have _hated_ that man, and I haven't met that girl yet, but knowing him, I'd probably hate her too. Right now though, I _love_ him, and d'you know why? Because he did the right thing. He sent you back to me."

"But what do I do every day, mum? What do I do? Get up, catch the bus, go to work, come back home, eat chips, and go to bed? Is that _it_?"

"It's what the rest of us do," Mickey remarked quietly.

Sure, he'd probably love to go on adventures, Angel had told him about a few of them and, the way she looked at him sometimes told him, maybe, she'd like to have a companion of her own, maybe even _him_ …but no one ever asked, no one ever even thought to ask HIM if he'd like to experience it all, see it for himself, see what was so great about it…the Doctor certainly didn't seem so keen to have him even the one time he _had_ asked, he could just tell the man hadn't wanted him around.

"But _I_ can't!" Rose shouted, cutting off his thoughts.

"Why, 'cos you're better than us?"

"No, I didn't mean _that_!" Rose said, frustrated, pausing, trying to clam down, "But it was...it was a _better_ life. And I...I don't mean all the travelling and...seeing aliens and spaceships and things, that don't matter. The Doctor showed me a better way of _living_ your life. Even Angel taught me to appreciate the little things in it," she looked in their eyes, looking at Mickey for a moment, "You know, he showed you too," she took a breath, "That you don't just _give up_. You don't just _let_ things happen. You take _a stand_. You say _no_. You have the _guts_ to do what's _right_ when _everyone else_ just _runs away_ , and I just _can't_ …" she broke off suddenly, kicking the table in frustration, and leapt to her feet, running out of the shop in despair as Jackie and Mickey glanced at one another.

~8~

Jack placed Lynda at the computer of the observation deck, "Right, Lynda, you are my eyes and ears. When the Daleks get in, you can follow it on that screen and report it to me."

"Understood," she nodded.

"They'll detect you but the door's made of Hydra Combination. Should keep them out."

"Should?"

"It's the best I can do," he smiled at her sadly, before calling into his wrist device, "How long till the Fleet arrives?

"They've accelerated," Davitch replied over the comm..

"This is it, ladies and gentlemen! We are at war!" he turned and ran out of the room as rows and rows of Dalek ships approached.

~8~

Rose sat on a bench outside, staring into space, as Mickey stood over her, "You can't spend the rest of your life thinking about the Doctor," Mickey told her gently, "Or Angel."

"But how do I forget him? How do I forget either of them?"

"You've got to start living your own life. You know, a proper life, like the kind he's never had. The sort of life that you could have with me."

Rose glanced away, seeing the words 'Bad Wolf' written in huge letters on the playground floor in spray paint. Astonished, she stood up and walked over to them, Mickey following. She looked up and realized the words were graffitied _all over_ the playground walls too, "Over here. It's over here as well!"

She ran over as Mickey called after her, "That's been there for _years_! It's just a phrase! It's just words!"

"I thought it was a _warning_..." Rose began, her excitement growing, "Maybe it's the opposite. Maybe it's a _message._ The same words written down now and 200,000 years in the future. It's a link between me and the Doctor and Angel! Bad Wolf _here_...Bad Wolf _there_!"

"But if it's a message, what's it saying?"

Rose just ran off, "It's telling me I can get back! The least I can do is help them escape!"

~8~

The volunteers set up to face the Daleks as Jack gave them instructions, "Stand your ground everyone...follow my commands. And good luck."

Davitch handed a gun to the female programmer.

~8~

"You were right!" Lynda shouted over the comm., watching the screen, "They're forcing the airlock on 494."

~8~

The Doctor and Angel worked fast as the Satellite shook terribly around them, sitting across from each other with the wires before them, the Doctor working on connecting them to a lever beside him.

Angel glanced over at the large monitor, able to see the Dalek ships floating there and frowned, "You know…" she began, "I think I might have a name among the Dalek legends too."

He looked up sharply, "You do?"

She nodded, "When I faced that one during the War, the one from the museum, he said..." she hesitated, a bit confused about the whole thing, "He said that he wanted the pleasure of killing the 'Life Bringer,'" she shook her head, "He was probably half-mad already though, of all the Daleks I'd faced on the fields, _none_ of them ever _spoke_ to me before that."

He eyed her a moment as she went back to working before doing the same, promising himself he'd find out more about that when the fate of the planet wasn't hanging in the balance.

~8~

The contestants on Floor 0 looked up in alarm as the station shook, not knowing the Daleks had just breached their walls.

~8~

"All the TARDIS needs to do is make a return trip," Rose said inside the TARDIS, "Just...reverse."

"Yeah, but we still can't do it," Mickey argued.

"The Doctor always said the TARDIS is telepathic. This thing can _listen_."

"It's not listening now, is it?"

"We need to get _inside_ it. Last time I saw you, with the Slitheen, this middle bit opened..." she put her hand on the console panel that held the Heart of the TARDIS, it was cold, "And there was this light...and Angel said it was the Heart of the TARDIS. If we can open it, we can make contact. I can tell it what to do!"

"Rose…"

"Hmm?" she looked up at him.

"If you go back, you're gonna die."

"That's a risk I've gotta take," she said confidently, "'Cos there's _nothing_ left for me here."

"Nothing?"

"No," she said, looking away to try and get to work.

Mickey looked down, _so_ _hurt_ by her words. After _everything_ he'd done for her, put up with for her…his fears were confirmed. He _must_ be nothing if even _Rose_ thought so.

"Ok, if that's what you think..." he took a breath, dignified despite the fact she'd ripped out his heart and crushed it, "Let's get this thing open."

~8~

Lynda frowned as she watched the Daleks on the screen, watching the red lights moving through the corridors, "Ok, activate internal lasers!" Jack shouted over the comm. as a Dalek approached, "Slice 'em up."

"Defenses have gone offline," Lynda called, worried, "The Daleks have overridden the lock!"

~8~

A row of Daleks moved dangerously down a corridor as the volunteers readied their guns and moved into position, firing as soon as the Daleks came in eyesight. But it had no effect, the bullets melted away before they could even reach the armor.

"You lied to me!" the floor manager shouted into her comm., "The bullets don't work!" but still she carried on firing, till a Dalek fired its laser at her.

She shouted in pain before slumping to the floor, dead.

~8~

Mickey started the engine of his car, hooked up to a thick strong chain attached to the TARDIS console, speeding up, trying to pull it off.

"Faster!" Rose shouted back to him.

He slammed his foot down, smoke billowing from underneath the car but the console refused to budge, "Come on!" he ground out.

"It's not moving!"

Mickey growled with effort, the chain growing more taunt, but still...nothing...

Till the chain shuddered and snapped.

Rose kicked the console in frustration, head down, defeated once again.

~8~

"Advance guard have made it to 495," Lynda called over the comm..

"Jack, how're we doing?" the Doctor's voice came over as well.

"495 should be good," he told them, "I like 495."

~8~

Three Daleks glided onto Floor 495, seeing something stationed ahead of them, "Identify yourself!" the first Dalek shouted.

"You are the Weakest Link," the Anne-Droid stated, "Goodbye!" she fired three times in quick succession, disintegrating the Daleks.

Jack punched the air in triumph, hearing this from another room, "Yes!"

Another Dalek rolled in.

"You are the Weakest Link…"

The Dalek fired, blowing her head off.

"Goodbye…" she powered down.

"Proceed to next level," the Dalek called as more Daleks entered and followed it.

~8~

"They're flying up the ventilation shafts!" Lynda breathed on the comm., before frowning, seeing the lights do something else as well, "No...wait a minute...oh, my God! Why're they doing that? They're going _down_!"

~8~

The stranded contestants sat on Floor 0 in a nervous silence, when suddenly…

"Exterminate!" a Dalek ordered as they swarmed the room, shooting at as many contestants as they could while they screamed and tried to flee.

"You can't!" Roddrick shouted, "You don't exist!" a Dalek advanced on him, backing him to a wall, "It's not fair! I won the game! I should be _rich_! I'm a _winner_ , you _can't_ do this to _me_!"

~8~

Lynda quickly shut off the audio so she couldn't hear the screams of those on Floor 0 being slaughtered.

She put her hand to her mouth, fighting back tears, before opening the comm. again, "Floor Zero. They killed them all."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ohhh...last chapter's coming up...Oh man! We'll finally find out quite a bit in the next chapter. What Angel was doing to the TARDIS at the end of Boom Town, what she did to the bracelets, and what will happen with the Bad Wolf.
> 
> Angel's name among the Daleks, there's definitely layers to the meanings that could attach themselves to it. Huge impacts, (though mostly) small impacts, positive and even negative connotations, and, when you think about it, Daleks want to 'exterminate' everyone so eliminating a 'life bringer' (whatever that is) would be something I could see them wanting. As for what it means exactly, it won't really be brought up often, but it will become clearer as the story goes on. Though, Life Bringer...does that mean she's Bad Wolf? Idk, ROSE is the one in the TARDIS trying to open the Heart...I guess we'll find out tomorrow :)
> 
> Poor Mickey though, seems to have had a set back in his confidence, oh well, I know just the person he needs to give it a boost, don't you? :)


	24. The Parting of the Ways: An Angel of Time

Rose slumped in the captain's chair, defeated, staring into space, as her mother stood before her, "It was _never_ gonna work, sweetheart," she tried to console her, "And the Doctor _knew_ that. He just wanted you to be _safe_."

"I _can't_ give up," she told her.

"Lock the door. Walk away."

"Dad wouldn't give up."

"Well, he's not here, is he? And even if he was, he'd say the same."

"No, he wouldn't," Rose said and her mother stared at her, shocked she would say that, "He'd tell me to try anything. If I could save the Doctor's life... _try anything_."

"Well, we're never gonna know."

"Well, _I_ know. 'Cos I _met_ him. I met dad."

"Don't be ridiculous," Jackie murmured quietly.

"They took me back in time, and I met dad."

"Don't say that."

"Remember when dad died?" Rose asked, her voice cracking, "There was someone with him," Jackie stared at her in disbelief, "A girl. A _blonde_ girl. She held his hand…" Rose started shouting, frustrated, "You saw her from a distance, mum! You _saw_ her! Think about it! That was _me._ You saw _me_ …"

"Stop it!" Jackie shouted abruptly.

"That's how good the Doctor and Ang…"

"Stop it!" Jackie cried, tears in her eyes, "Just _stop it_!" she ran out of the TARDIS, leaving Rose alone to cry in her grief.

~8~

"Lynda!" the Doctor yelled through the comm. as he and Angel worked, "What's happening on Earth?"

"The Fleet's descending..." Lynda replied quietly, "They're bombing whole continents. Europa...Pacifica...the New American Alliance...Australasia's just...gone."

~8~

Jack ran onto Floor 499, "Floor 499," he called to the programmers, "We're the last defense. The bullets should work if you concentrate them on the Dalek's eyestalk. I've got the force field at maximum so the Dalek fire part should be at its weakest," he positioned himself with the other volunteers behind the barricade, waiting.

"I'm only here 'cos of you," Davitch said to the female programmer, "I joined the program because... _you_ were on it."

"Am I supposed to say, 'when this is all over and if we're still alive, maybe we could go for a drink?'" she asked him.

"That'd be nice."

"Yeah, well...tough," she replied.

He looked at her, but she just winked at him with a smile, before they released the safety catches on their guns, ready.

~8~

Mickey and Rose were leaning against Mickey's car, looking at the TARDIS, "There's _gotta_ be something else we can do," he muttered.

"Mum was right..." Rose sighed, "Maybe we should just lock the door and walk away."

"I'm not having that. I'm not having you just…just give up now. No way," he shook his head, and...it wasn't just her, not anymore.

Hearing her talking about how the Doctor and Angel were trapped in the future, probably about to die...it upset him. True, he didn't care for the Doctor much, the man tending to make him feel like more of an idiot than he already believed himself to be, but he didn't wish the man dead. And he especially didn't want Angel to get hurt. That girl...she'd actually made him smile and feel accepted, like he'd really been a part of the whole group when they'd stopped Margaret. She'd watched out for him and stuck with him, _helped him_. The _least_ he could do was try to help her in return.

"We just need something stronger than my car...something bigger...something like...that!" he looked over her shoulder to see a huge yellow recovery truck drive around the corner by Jackie.

Rose grinned in amazement at the sight of her mother climbing out.

"Right," Jackie said, "You've only got this until six o'clock, so get on with it."

"Mum, where the hell did you get _that_ from?" Rose asked, astonished.

"Rodrigo. He owes me a favor. Never mind why, but you were right about your dad, sweetheart. He was _full_ of mad ideas, and this is _exactly_ what he would've done. Now, get on with it before I change my mind," she tossed the keys to Mickey who caught them and hurried into the truck while Rose went to attach the chain.

~8~

The volunteers pointed their guns behind a makeshift wall as the Daleks glided in.

"Open fire!" Jack ordered and they started firing madly at the Daleks, the sounds drifting up to Floor 500.

But the Daleks advanced, unaffected.

"It's not working!" Davitch jumped down to talk to Jack.

"Concentrate your fire! Eyestalk, two o' clock!"

A volunteer continued to fire, the bullets just dropping to the ground as they hit the force field. One bullet, though, managed to catch one in the eyestalk, "My vision is impaired!" it cried, "I cannot see!"

"We did it!" the female programmer cheered...a moment before a bolt hit her, killing her.

"No!" Davitch screamed, "NO!" he turned in a rage and fired madly at the Daleks over the barricade…only to be hit by a bolt as well, leaving Jack and a volunteer to continue.

~8~

"I've got a problem..." Lynda's voice came over the comm. as the Doctor and Angel rushed around at the sound of firing still below them.

"Human female detected," they could hear a Dalek.

"They've _found_ me," Lynda breathed, terrified.

"You'll be alright, Lynda," the Doctor reassured her, "That side of the station's reinforced against meteors."

"Hope so!" she said, but they could hear her voice shaking, "Know what they say about Earth workmanship..."

Then the noise of sparks sounded, the Daleks were trying to cut through the door.

"Lynda?" Angel called, hearing silence, her hand hovering on the bracelet.

"They're surrounding me," Lynda gasped.

There was the sound of glass smashing...

Lynda screamed...

And Angel activated the bracelet.

The Doctor looked up, in shock, "They killed her…"

"No," Angel shook her head.

He turned sharply to face her, stunned and confused.

She pulled off the bracelet and held it, "Used the sonic to reprogram this to act as a teleporter. I sent her to the Controller's med-ship. It should be far enough away by now to be safe."

He nearly beamed at her, about to hug her, thrilled, when they heard Jack yelling over the comm., "Last man standing! For God's sake, Doctor, finish that thing and kill them!"

"Finish that thing and kill mankind," the Emperor said.

They looked over to see the Emperor watching them on the screen before they glanced at each other and got back to work.

~8~

Jackie watched, standing just outside the TARDIS doors, as Mickey drove the truck, Rose standing by the console, watching the chain stretch, "Keep going!" Rose shouted.

"Put your foot down!" Jackie called to Mickey and he did so.

"Faster!"

"Give it some more, Mickey!"

The metal began to creak and Rose smiled, "Keep going!"

"Come on, come on!" Jackie nearly jumped up and down in anticipation.

The chain grew more and more taunt, Rose growing hopeful, "Keep going!"

"Give it some more!" the chain tightened until finally…

The truck lurched forward as the chain snapped off the TARDIS, trailing out the doors after it, Jackie jumping back to avoid it.

"NO!" Rose shouted, her _one last hope_ gone, as she kicked and beat the console.

"Rose!" Mickey jumped out of the car, turning to the TARDIS to see her in a rage. He and Jackie _just_ reached the doors when they slammed shut.

Rose fell back against the console, sobbing, not even noticing the doors, until...

"Rose?" a voice called.

Rose gasped, looking up to see a projection of Angel, much like the one the Doctor had left her, but facing towards the console, standing in between two Y-beams, her back to the doors.

"If this is playing then you've tried to open the Heart of the TARDIS. You won't be able to, I've set it so that it will _only_ open with a very specific key."

"Where is it?" Rose got up, moving to stand before her.

"I'll tell you where to find it but first you MUST promise me something."

"Anything!"

"You must promise to do _exactly_ as I say. If the TARDIS senses, even for a _second_ , that you _aren't_ doing as I asked, then she will shut down and that will be _it_."

Rose blinked and nodded.

"Good," the hologram gave a small nod, "You must have honestly accepted if this continues to play. So, on the console, there's a round panel with what looks like a figure eight on it," Rose ran over, looking around the console quickly, finding it, "Lift it up and inside there is a sort of small cylinder with holes on the side," Rose popped it up and found the small gray item on a string, "Now you must listen to this _first_ Rose before doing _anything_ else."

Rose turned around, staring at the projection intently, the key clutched in her hand, "What is it?"

"There will be a small hole on top of the panel that opens the Heart of the TARDIS. You place the cylinder in it, use it like a key, but when the panel opens, you _must_ hold the cylinder before you. It will absorb the Heart into the cylinder and set off a pre-designated flight plan that overrides Emergency Program One. The cylinder is bio-coded to me, it'll guide the TARDIS right back to me, to the Doctor. Now this is _very important_ Rose," she took a breath, "As soon as you land, as _soon_ as you open those doors, make sure I get the cylinder," she paused, "You MUSTN'T look into the Heart, no matter what. When it opened last time I...I _felt_ it. I'm afraid it will _destroy_ you if you do. And…" she hesitated, "I think it might destroy the Doctor too. So _please_ , do as I say," she offered a small smile, "Good luck."

The projection blinked out and Rose ran to get to work.

~8~

Jack ran down the corridor backwards, shooting in vain at the Daleks as they advanced on him, "You've got twenty seconds maximum!" he shouted through the comm..

~8~

Rose shoved the key into the panel, twisting it till the panel popped up slightly. She pulled it out quickly to dangle it before her by the string as the panel opened completely, holding it up to the light, looking away, into her arm, as it swarmed into it, the TARDIS taking off, flying through the Vortex.

~8~

Jack's bullets ran out as he reached the end of the corridor, he tossed the gun aside and pulled out another smaller one, firing that…only for it to run out as well. He tossed it to the ground before facing them squarely, defiantly, his back against a wall.

"Exterminate!" they cried, raising their laser arms.

"I kinda figured that," he muttered, opening his arms, closing his eyes, bracing himself, ready.

The Daleks fired, killing him dead.

~8~

The Doctor pulled up a lever on the device they'd put together, "It's ready!" he turned to Angel behind him, only to see Daleks roll into the room, surrounding them, "You really wanna _think_ about this," the Doctor warned them as Angel stood as well, looking around, forced closer to him by the swarm, "'Cos if I activate the signal, every living creature dies."

"I am immortal," the Emperor remarked over the monitor.

"D'you wanna put that to the test?"

"I want to see you become like me. Hail the Doctor, the Great Exterminator!"

"I'll do it!" the Doctor warned, putting his hands on the lever.

"Then prove yourself, Doctor. What are you, coward or killer?"

His hands tensed, ready to pull, as he shook, his face screwed up in pain at the weight of what it would mean.

"It's alright," Angel said, stepping beside him, putting a hand on his, her hands shaking as well, "Everything will be alright. Trust me."

He looked at her, seeing in her eyes that she was not _encouraging_ him, but telling him it was alright to _let go_ , and so he did, glaring up at the Emperor as she backed away to stand behind him, "Coward. Any day."

"Mankind will be harvested because of _your_ weakness," the Emperor laughed.

"And what about me? Am I becoming one of your angels?"

"No," Angel answered, " _I_ am."

The Doctor spun around, not even noticing she had walked a few feet away from him.

She turned just as the sound of the TARDIS materializing reached them.

"Alert!" a Dalek reported, "TARDIS materializing!"

The Doctor watched in horror as the TARDIS appeared.

"You will not escape!" the Emperor shouted.

The doors burst open and Rose ran out, tossing something glowing gold on a chain to Angel. She snatched it in the air and pulled it over her head, the gold swarming out to surround her, flowing into her as she hunched forward with a cry of pain.

"NO!" the Doctor yelled, realizing what was happening, that she was absorbing the Heart of the TARDIS, the power of the Vortex.

Angel straightened slowly and turned around, the golden light surrounding her, casting a billowing breeze around her, the golden flecks of her eyes now entirely gold with the power of the Vortex in her.

"What've you _done_?" he breathed, terrified, not _of_ her, but _for_ her.

"I have taken in the Time Vortex," she replied softly, her voice echoing.

" _No one's_ meant to do that," he shook his head at her, alarmed, "Especially not _us_!"

"This is the abomination!" the Emperor cried.

"Exterminate!" the Daleks shouted, firing at her.

Angel held up a hand, the lasers freezing and reversing back into the Daleks as the Doctor blinked in amazement, "I have saved the Bad Wolf," she replied, glancing sadly at Rose, before turning back, "And thus I create myself, a new being. I take the words..." she looked up at the wall at the letters of the logo, waving her hand, "I scatter them in time and space…" they started to rise and drift off, disappearing, "A message to lead us here."

"You've got to _stop_ this," the Doctor told her urgently, "You've got to stop this _now_."

"I know what to do," Angel said quietly, looking ahead at the Emperor.

"You've got the entire _Vortex_ running through your head!"

"I can feel it."

"You're gonna _burn_ ," he cried, eyes wide in concern…he didn't know how long she could last. His hearts were racing, if she died...he didn't even want to think about that...

"I want you _safe_ ," she looked at the Doctor, tears in her eyes, "I want _creation_ safe," she looked up at the Emperor, "Protected from the false god and his disciples."

"You cannot hurt _me_ ," the Emperor remarked, "I am _immortal_."

"You are _tiny_ ," she corrected, "I can see the whole of time and space, I see your very _existence_. I see _everything_ you have done," she blinked, frowning, tears falling, "She is angry, her sisters are dead, her planet is destroyed, turned to dust. The Time War ends _now_."

"I cannot die!"

She looked up at the Daleks, holding out her hand again, "Everything, all things, must die."

"I _will not_ die!"

"As you wish," Angel blinked, holding both her arms out.

The Doctor turned in a circle, watching as all the Daleks glowed gold for a moment before turning to stone, even the almighty Emperor, and beaming off the station, back to their own ships. He looked at a screen monitoring the Dalek ships, watching as they zoomed about, colliding with themselves for lack of pilots and controllers, burning and exploding in space. He spun to Angel as she lowered her arms, she'd wiped out the Daleks, without _killing_ a single one…

"Angel," he breathed, moving to stand before her, "You've done it. Now stop. Just let go."

"I know," she breathed, "But there is one thing more…"

She closed her eyes, concentrating...

~8~

Captain Jack gasped back to life.

~8~

"Now give it _back_ ," the Doctor pleaded as her eyes opened, her gorgeous green eyes glowing golden, " _Please_. You need to give it back."

He _couldn't_ lose her.

"I can't…" she cried, golden tears pouring down her face.

"The power's gonna _kill_ you!"

"It _won't_ leave me…" she breathed, sounding truly terrified.

"Angel…" he stared at her in horror as the golden light grew more intense, all stemming from the necklace.

He recognized it now, it was like a fission cell/container, much like how lights would be powered in the future. When installing such lights the containers had to be bio-coded to their handlers to protect them, the fission would burn the hands if not bio-coded to be touched by a specific person. But those containers were completely useless in holding the true power of the Vortex, strong enough to keep it contained it for a few moments though...which was what had happened, the power was siphoning off into Angel now, more and more the longer she wore it.

"It's burning you alive…"

"I know…" he reached forward, as though to pull the necklace off, when she gaped, "Don't!" he looked at her, "It's bio-coded to me…" she reminded him, "You can't take it off and the power…I can't _move_ …" she swallowed hard, "You need to leave."

He shook his head, "We promised to take care of each other," stepping towards her, "I will _never_ leave you."

He reached forward and gently pulled her into his arms, carefully leaning down and kissing her, the Vortex flowing out of her eyes and into his as they did so. Slowly, they parted, gazing at each other a moment before her eyes fluttered closed and she fell into his arms, unconscious. He held her close a moment, before carefully laying her down on the floor, gently brushing a strand of hair out of her face before standing, his eyes faintly glowing.

"Rose get out of the way," he called to the girl huddled at the bottom of the TARDIS, watching the events with wide eyes. She quickly shuffled away as the Doctor exhaled, expelling the Vortex from his mouth to stream back through the doors and into the TARDIS.

He smiled as the Heart of the TARDIS panel shut again before leaning down to observe Angel, just stroking her face.

~8~

Jack groaned and winced as he staggered through the doorway to Floor 500, looking around in confusion at the empty area...when he heard the TARDIS engines roar to life.

He ran over, only to see it dematerializing, leaving him stranded. And he knew what that meant...Angel was either unconscious or dead because she would _never_ let the Doctor do that to anyone.

He could only pray she would be alright in the end.

~8~

The TARDIS flew through the Vortex as the Doctor piloted, Rose sitting beside Angel on the floor, watching over the woman as the Doctor explained to her what had happened back there.

Angel groaned as her eyes fluttered open, her head _killing_ her, Rose leaning forward to help her sit up, "What happened?"

"Don't you remember?" the Doctor looked at her, surprised.

"I do," she tried to smile, but winced, rubbing her head, "Feels more like a dream though."

"Nope," he laughed, though secretly pleased she might have just admitted to having dreams of kissing him.

"Never doing that again," she replied with a nod to the now-locked panel, reaching out to Rose as the woman helped her to her feet, neither seeing the Doctor glance down at his hand, his veins shimmering gold, "Doctor…" she breathed and he looked up to see her eyeing him, worried, Rose supporting her.

He smiled at them sadly, "I was gonna take you to _so many places_. Barcelona, not the _city_ Barcelona, the _planet_. You'd love it. Fantastic place, they've got dogs with no noses," he laughed at that, Rose laughing as well while Angel just watched him, concerned, "Imagine how many times a day you'd end up telling that joke, and it's still funny!"

"Then, why can't we go?" Rose asked, "Be a nice vacation after all that."

"Maybe you will," the Doctor shrugged, "And maybe I will. But not like this."

"No…" Angel breathed, seeming to realize what he was saying.

"You're not making sense!" Rose shook her head at him, not having heard her, giving him a little grin, "Taking a leaf out of Angel's book eh?"

"I might never make sense again!" he said, "I might have two heads. Or no head!" he laughed, "Imagine me with no head! And don't say that's an improvement..." Rose grinned, "But it's a bit dodgy, this process. You never know what you're gonna end up with…"

Suddenly he fell backwards with a blast of golden light, wrapped his arms around his stomach as Rose ran forward, concerned.

"No!" Angel shouted, pulling her back, "We need to stay back."

"Stay away!" the Doctor agreed, wincing in pain.

"What's going on?" Rose looked between them.

"Angel absorbed all the energy of the Time Vortex, and no one's meant to do that!" the Doctor ground out, "I pulled it out in time, but the process left me damaged," he groaned, it had been hard, that power hadn't wanted to leave her, "Every cell in my body's dying."

"Can't you _do_ something?" Rose cried, horrified.

"He is," Angel explained, "Time Lords can avoid death by..." she looked at him sadly, "Changing, everything," Rose shook her head, not understanding, "It's what I did," Angel tried to elaborate more, "When the Dalek shot me in Van Statten's museum, I changed…"

Rose just shook her head more and Angel realized she hadn't been close enough to see the differences between her old and new body, probably didn't even notice the change in hair color or left it to her hair being REALLY dirty.

"I'm not gonna see you again," the Doctor added, "Not like _this_. Not with this daft old face."

"Doctor," Angel looked at him, feeling so incredibly guilty, "I'm sorry, I'm _so_ sorry."

"Not your fault," he smiled gently at her, "Just…before I go..."

"Don't _say_ that!" Rose shouted, cutting him off.

"Rose…" Angel whispered, there wasn't much time.

"Before I go, I just wanna tell you, you were fantastic," he beamed, " _Absolutely fantastic_. The both of you. And d'you know what?" Rose shook her head and he grinned, "So was I."

Rose smiled, nodding, as Angel watched, feeling even worse when the Doctor convulsed, the orange energy of regeneration exploding from him. He threw his head backwards, his arms spread wide as the energy tore through him. They staggered back, bracing themselves against one of the Y-beams, watching as his hair lengthened and his face changed and he grew slimmer.

The energy suddenly died away and a completely different man stood before them, still wearing the Doctor's dark clothes and leather jacket, appearing slightly surprised for a moment.

"Hello!" he began and already they could tell he had a different accent to him, "Ok…ooh…" he gulped, running his tongue over his teeth, brow furrowed, "New teeth. That's weird. So, where was I? Oh, that's right! Barcelona!"

He grinned at them widely.

To be continued...in...Meeting of the Minds!

* * *

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And now we know what Angel was doing to the TARDIS eh? :) I hope it was believable how she became the 'Bad Wolf' (but not really THE Bad Wolf, I honestly don't know what she is). I had mentioned that Angel knew about the Bad Wolf popping up before she was freed, Rose having told her about her encounters with it, and so here, she already knew it was the words 'Bad Wolf' so, in a way, it was an event that had already happened and had to be maintained, thus using Bad Wolf instead of another message to get them to that point. I'm sort of glad Angel took in the Vortex, I did NOT want the Doctor kissing anyone but Angel :)
> 
> And now we've got 10! 10 is where the relationship REALLY picks up :) I've kept 10 as DT and not changed him like I did in an AU for the Professor (Rewritten, found on FF.net) because Rose was there too, and I always felt like she was the reason 10 became who he was, Angel though definitely helped. 'Doctor, I'm sorry, I'm so sorry' sound familiar? ;) But poor Angel though, she tried so hard to avoid this happening and the Doctor regenerated anyway, well...for every end there is a new beginning :)
> 
> As for the next story's title, there'll definitely be a meaning behind each and every title in relation to Angel and the Doctor, the first few though will be more about...Mating! (lol, I still giggle at that word) :) And we'll also get to see the relationships Angel has with the Doctor/Rose/Mickey grow even more :)
> 
> I hope I do you proud in the next installment of The Heart of Time Saga. Check back next week for Meeting of the Minds :)


End file.
